My Alien Robot
by smellysoap
Summary: Julie met her first robot at nine years old, but the memory of that experience is probably some fantasy any child can make up at that age. Now in high school, she has to confront what her odd dreams have been telling her, and explore this new world of robots, all because of some alien-y attraction from this person called Sides. But what about the decepticon she met as a child? OC
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

_Eight Years Prior_ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"_I do __not__ have time to do it right now Maddy!"_

"_Well make the time!" My mom roared like a monster. _

"_You don't do shit in this house! Why don't you pull a little weight around here?" Daddy stood up from the couch, throwing a bottle of beer across the room. The glass shattered._

_Hiding under the kitchen table, I cringed at the exploding sound of glass against the wall. Deep down, I already knew that the shards would remain there for the next several days, joining the already large pile accumulating on the floor. _

"_Oh ha ha, and that's coming from you!" Mom yelled sarcastically. She paced around the room, picking up the stray blankets on the floor and tossing them carelessly onto the couch. She ran a hand through her hair sighing hopelessly. Over the course of what seemed like only a few days, new age lines ran down her face and a considerable amount of white hair was beginning to peak out of her hairline. "All you do is sit on your ass all day, drink beer, and bringing almost nothing home for the one day you work! You do __nothing__! You…"_

"_That's enough bitch!" Daddy roared. He charged at her, slamming her smaller body against the wall. He seemed a little unsteady, slurring a bit as he talked. "I __dare__ you to say more you two timing slut! Stop pretending to give a shit about how much I take care of this god forsaken family, because I do a hell of a lot more than you do!" Mommy's eyes seem to widen in surprise at his words, and in fright at his action. _

_I let out a whimper. What did "two timing" mean? It was not something I had heard before. And I've noticed that Daddy had never been really nice to Mommy and me, but never had he touched Mommy like this. I crawled meekly from under the table and tugged on Daddy's shirt. He was so tall, I had to tippy toe as high as I could to reach the little tag attached on the side! "Daddy," I said uncertainly. Ever since Mommy and Daddy began fighting, I had never stepped in to stop them. Mommy had once told me it was not my business to but then again, Daddy had never touched Mommy like this. "you're hurting her." I said quietly._

_Daddy let out a roar and used his arm to toss me across the room beside the broken glass. I gave out a yelp as I hit the wall. As he was distracted, I heard Mommy rush toward the hallway towards the front door. I stood up. Daddy can't hurt Mommy! He can't hurt her like this. I began to wobble my way toward where my parents were at the front door, rubbing my aching head where it hit the wall. I was feeling a little dizzy. Mommy was thrashing against Daddy. She was screaming. _

"_Stop!" I cried as loud as I could, but was drowned out by my struggling parents. Daddy continued to hit Mommy as she struggled against him. Mommy didn't deserve this. She never did anything to hurt Daddy. Feeling useless, I did the only thing I could think of doing to help her: I stomped on Daddy's feet. "Stop it!" I cried. "Stop it! Stop it!" I cringed at the pitch of Daddy's yelp at the pain in his feet. "You're hurting her!" Daddy ignored me again and had to lean on the armrest of the couch to cradle his poor feet. I felt a little regretful then. I didn't mean to hurt him that much. I just wanted him to stop hitting Mommy. _

_Daddy looked up suddenly realising something. I didn't know what at first, until he went out an already open front door. When had that been open? "Hey bitch! Bitch!" he cried down the street. I did not hear a reply. "If you're going to fucking run away like a whore, at least take your little brat with you!"_

_Was he talking about me? I followed out to the driveway to see Mommy running down the street. She was running fast. "… Mommy?" I said quietly. Where was she going? "M-Mommy?" I said louder. Was she coming back? Was she coming back at all? Neither Daddy nor Mommy gave any reply to my cries. I began to feel the burning of tears welling up in my eyes. "MOMMY!" I yelled down the entire block. It would have been hard for her not to have heard me, but in a matter of seconds she had turned the corner and disappeared. Why had she not replied to me? Or at least turn around to look at me. Shocked, I turned to Daddy, my eyes wide. "D-Daddy?" I asked quietly. "I-is she c-coming back?"_

_Daddy snorted. "With my luck, hopefully not." He said, turning to go back into the house. I stood there silently. That can't be true. He was lying! Mommy wasn't supposed to leave me! If anything, I was supposed to leave her when I was old enough to be on my own! That's what always happens in the movies! She couldn't be leaving me. Daddy was lying._

_With high hopes, I darted my way down the block, aiming to turn the same corner Mommy had. "Mommy!" I yelled for her breathlessly, trying to follow. _

"_Hey! You brat!" I heard Daddy yell from the door, but I did not listen to him. I couldn't. Not when Mommy wasn't there. _

_I ran for what seemed like forever. Where was she? I had turned the exact same corner Mommy had, and continued going straight after that. I even continued shouting for her name. The deeper I ran into the city, the more frequent the worried looks I received from various strangers were. But none of them ever came up to me to ask me what was wrong, or to ask me where my 'Mommy' was. It must've been strange for them to see a nine year old running all over downtown, crying for her Mommy. _

_I reached the outskirts of town, but continued to run. Why? I didn't know. It was hopeless now. I would definitely not find Mommy now, but all I could think of doing was run. I had to run. Where? Who cares. Just keep running and leave everything behind me. That sounded like a really good idea. _

_But alas, my hyperactive nine year old energy was all consumed by the time I reached a woodsy area. I could barely make out the tall buildings of downtown in the distance! I sat on a dry log, resting my head in my palms, catching my breath. Admittedly, the first thing I could think of is how far I had run, and how good it felt. I could still feel the wind rushing against my hair as I ran as fast as I could… or that could just be the chill of January wind passing by my spot. _

_After reminiscing about my run, I then thought of how I would get home. Perhaps Mommy had returned home for me. She could've… though, by the look of her face, it didn't seem like she would come back. She had a harsh look of contempt in her eyes when Daddy had hit her. I'm beginning to doubt that I'll ever see her again. Everything seemed hopeless. I felt a warm tear drop run down my face, as if it was trying to console me with its warmth, but it only made me sob louder. Why is this happening? I was choking in the midst of my sobs that were so loud that I barely heard the small pine tree next to me become squished into smithereens… almost._

"_Egh, it's just a human." A deep baritone voice sounded. _

_I looked up a little in awe as I saw a very tall black and grey robot. I felt my tears beginning to disappear. The robot had dark metal plates for extra shoulder padding and three claws on each hand as fingers. I found myself almost having to step back to look at all of it at once! He was a very big robot._

"_A human__ sparkling__." The robot muttered with slight surprise in his voice._

_Scratch that. He was a __giant__ robot._

"_A __leaking__ human sparkiling." The robot said, bending down to examine me further. _

_I was slightly puzzled at his choice of words and decided to speak to him. He seemed… nice. "They're called tears." I said sniffling. "And I'm not leaki- I mean crying. And what is a sparkling anyways?" _

_The robot seemed to register what I was saying and sat down on the dirt, looking mildly interested. "A sparkling is a child." He said. "And do not lie. You have these 'tears' coming out of your optics."_

"_Optics? You mean eyes?" I asked, confused, rubbing them. "And see? I'm not crying!" I said stubbornly. The robot's eyes seem to narrow, but I did not find him scary. It was then that I noticed that his metal armour seemed to be splattered all over with dirt and mud. Did he just finish playing in the mud or something? Isn't he a little old to be playing in the mud? I'm nine and even I don't play in the mud! "You're all dirty." I pointed out._

_The robot's gaze turned away from me as he examined himself. "I am." He stated. "I have just landed onto your planet Earth. I am the first of the Decepticons to be here." He said with a hint of pride in his voice. _

"_Decepta-hooey?" _

"_De-cep-ti-cons." __He sounded out for me._

_My nose crinkled. "It's too big of a word for me."_

"_As to be expected from a mere human sparkling."_

"_Hey! I'm turning ten soon!"_

"_A mere __ten__ year old sparkling." He out right sneered at me. _

_I glared at him. "Well you're a __robot__." I said with emphasis. "A __dirty __robot. Are you some sort of fairy god mother from space or something?"_

_The robot's eyes narrowed again. "I am no fairy. I am Barricade of the Decepticons from planet Cybertron. You should fear me."_

"_But god mothers are supposed to be nice!" I protested. "And pretty."_

"_I am not a god mother." He said again, this time almost growling. "And I may not be pretty, but I am fearful, which is pits better than 'pretty'" He scoffed. I refused to show any fear to this robot..., alien..., Decepta-hooey guy. Barricade, the robot, huffed. "Besides, I do not need to listen to some weak human sparkling. I don't have time for this." He said, beginning to walk away._

"_Wait!" I called out for him. "Wait up!" I began to follow his large figure. This robot was interesting! And funny! How can he be fearful? He was nice! Even Daddy isn't this nice. Barricade, the robot, began pushing away taller pine trees towards an empty street. I heard a police siren blare pass, though I could not see it. I was still in the brush! "Barricade sir!" I called for him. The next thing I knew, when I pushed away the annoying foliage, I saw Barricade, the robot, shift his metal parts into a police car! It looked almost futuristic… like it did not belong in this time. It looked like it belonged in the future, but it wasn't. It was right in front of me! "Whoah!" I exclaimed to him. "You're an alien __police officer__?" I gasped. "That's so __cool__!" Barricade seemed to be pleased with my reaction as I saw his wind shield wipers wipe away some non-existent scum off his windshield. I smiled at myself. He really was nice! Immediately, I grabbed for the door handle and tossed myself into the passenger seat. _

"_W-What are you doing human?" Came a voice from the radio._

"_Wow! You can talk from the radio?" I exclaimed excitedly again. _

"_Do not ignore me! Get out now!" Came his radio voice. He surprised me when he reopened the passenger door. _

"_WHOAH! Barricade sir! This is awesome! You can open doors by yourself, and turn into a super cool police car and your robot body is __so cool__!" Barricade did not reply to me, as I was gawking at his dashboard and all his glowy blue buttons. "Maybe you __are__ pretty after all." I said. _

_Seeming strongly flattered, Barricade shut the door and began driving. "For a human sparkling, you are not so bad." He said with a slight smirk in his voice. I grinned at him. "I will take you anywhere you want. Just name it." He said. "Actually, it is getting late. Where is your home sparkling femme?"_

_My features faltered completely at the mention of home. "My name is Julie." I said quietly. "What is a femme?"_

"_It means 'female' young one. Now w__here is your home?" He asked again, though, there was an irritated tone evident through his speakers._

"_I-I don't want to go home!" I exclaimed. "Daddy will be there. I've never been alone with Daddy before. His breath always smells bad because he always drinks his a-alco-alcocli…" I had trouble pronouncing it._

"_Alcohol?" Barricade offered. _

"_Yeah!" I said. "You're smart." _

_I heard him sigh through his radio. "I suppose you may stay with me for tonight…. __Just tonight__." He said firmly. "No more than one night. I have better things to do than watch over a human sparkling." He said bitterly, but deep down, I heard a bit of sincerity in his voice. _

"_Thank you Barricade sir!" I said excitedly, hugging all that I could… mainly his super cool dashboard. _

"_Get off me sparkling, you're leaving your fingerprints on me."_

_I smiled at him. "Are we staying at a hotel?" Barricade seemed to pause for a minute before replying. "You do know what a hotel is right?"_

"_I'm looking it up…I- Oh… No we are not." There was a thoughtful silence. I guess he was thinking of where else we could go. "I've scanned that there is an empty place up town somewhere. I will be able to fit inside."_

"_Really? Wow!" I said amazed. This robot could do a lot of things. Amazing things! "Where is it?"_

"_Like I said, up town, now hold on!" _

_And I said the only thing I could say: "Wee! Faster!"_

_I helped Barricade, the robot, break into this barn sort of thing. Well, it didn't look like it was being used… even though there were some clothes and bedding lying around, but it seemed like no one had been here in quite a while. There was lots of space for Barricade, the robot, and then there was a small loft a little bit more inward of the barn, where Barricade deemed safe for me to climb on. I had to say, it look suspiciously weak, but if he said it was okay, I trusted him. _

_When I saw the random bed sheets and pillow on the random mattress at the loft, I squealed. It was the largest mattress I have ever seen! Not even Mommy and Daddy slept on this size of a mattress, and even in their current one they never let me play or sleep in it. "Barricade, help me build a house!"_

"_A house? How can you build a house in here? It's puny!" he scoffed._

"_No, no, no… well, fine, a fort!" I began arranging the pillows so they would stand up by themselves._

"_A fort?"_

"_You really don't know anything do you Barricade sir? It's called a pillow fort!"_

_Barricade watched me carefully as I draped a sheet over the pillows. "It would stand up better if the pillow was like this." He said, repositioning said pillow._

"_Wow! I thought you didn't know what this was! How did you know?"_

_Barricade smiled proudly. "I can search the internet any time I want!" _

_I gaped in amazement. "That's so cool! I don't even own a computer!" I said, diving into my own fort. "Hey Barricade! I bet you can't find me!"_

"_Childish sparkling." I heard his voice scoff. "You're right here!" I felt him poke the fort, but giggled when he did not poke me! _

"_Wrong!" I laughed, shifting my position in the fort._

"_Here!" _

_I giggled again. "Wrong!" Irritated, I felt him lift the entire sheet off to expose the pillows. "Hey!" I exclaimed. "You're not playing fair!"_

"_I'm a Decepticon. I do not play fair."_

"_That's a load of hooey." I said. "You're supposed to play by the rules!"_

_That night, I had stayed up the latest I have ever had! Barricade, the robot, let me! I really did like him. He didn't shout or yell like Mommy and Daddy did. He got frustrated sure, but he wasn't particularly angry. It was fun to make him irritated. _

_The next morning, I found myself waking around noon time because of my stomach gurgling. I punched it softly asking for it to be quiet but that only made it grumble louder. I groaned to find myself absolutely buried within a pile of white pillows and sheets. It was then that I remembered where I was. Where was Barricade the robot? I shot up from my white sanctuary to find a sleeping robot below the loft. He looked very peaceful, as if nothing was troubling him at all. I carefully climbed down the ladder to get a better look at him. _

_As much as he would like to deny it, he didn't look scary at all! He looked like… well… a robot! He wasn't pretty like I had said, but he wasn't fearful either. I crept closer to him but almost yelped when his red eyes snapped open and circled in on me. "Heh-heh… morning sir." I said._

_Barricade groaned and stretched. "Sparkling." He acknowledged. I liked it when he called me that. It made me feel sort of special, even though it was probably a common word back on his planet. It made me sound… sparkly. "It's time to take you home now."_

"_W-wait, now? Already?" I said, greatly crestfallen. _

"_Yes, now. Get up."_

"_No-no." My eyes began to burn again with water welling up in them. "I don't want to go back!"_

_He huffed, frustrated. "Why are you leaking again?"_

_I ignored the lack of correctness of his term. "I'm n-not!" I choked, rubbing my eyes to stop the tears, but only succeeded in making my eyes even more red. _

"_You are. Why?"_

"_Because… because…" I began thinking of Mommy and resumed my sobbing again. "Mommy ran away." I said. "And Daddy is scary!"_

"_Mommy? Daddy?" The robot took a few seconds to reply. "You mean your creators." He said. _

_I nodded. Mommy, Daddy, creators, whatever this robot wanted to call it. "Daddy says he's hoping Mommy won't ever come back! He hit her!" I sobbed. Barricade was silenced by my words. He did not say anything, but watched me cry. "I don't want to go back sir! Don't make me!"_

_He paused before replying. "I cannot keep you Julie." He said, using my name for the first time. "You will only be in danger if you are to be with me."_

"_You'll protect me though! I'll stay out of the way! I promise!" I said desperately. At home, Daddy never really talked to me or anything. He mostly yelled at Mommy and sat on the couch, drinking his yucky tasting drink, and then smashing them against the wall. Now that Mommy is gone, I don't know if I can live there with him any more… not that Mommy really talked to me either._

"_I cannot Julie." He said. "I am sorry. You're a good sparkling." He said, patting my head with a claw, and pausing for a moment as I tried to stop crying. "I can hurt him for you? Will that make you feel bet-"_

"_No, no!" I cried. "Don't hurt him, please no. I don't mean to get anyone hurt. I'm just scared of him. That's all."_

"_You shouldn't be. He is your creator. He will protect you." He attempted to comfort but I said nothing. There was really nothing Daddy really did to prove that he will hurt me, but deep down inside, I had this feeling of dread building up inside. "I will take you home." _

_I gave Barricade, my alien robot, yes, my alien robot, a weak smile. Maybe he just didn't want me. But it doesn't matter. No one really wanted me. It had been that way since… since… as long as I can remember. _

_But it didn't matter, he was Barricade. Alien or not, he is the first being to really become my friend. I'll remember him for that. Barricade… the robot. _

Present Day_ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - _

"Miss Darlington?" A distant voice said. "Miss Darlington?" There it was again. "Miss Darlington!" It snapped.

"Yes sir!" I shot my head straight up, alarmed, earning a few giggles throughout the class.

Ms Higginbottom gave me, and the class, a vicious glare, as if to say 'that is _not_ funny'! "That is _ma'am_ to you Miss Darlington." I blushed. "And I would appreciate it if you would at least give the courtesy to pay attention in my class," her eyes narrowed. "_failing_ or not!"

Another few giggles erupted in the room. I refrained from glaring at the few owners of the giggles. What was wrong with failing Math? It was a hard-ass class that, who are we kidding, we'll never use in our entire lives. It was a stupid class. And I can't help that I keep dreaming about the strange robot I had met back in Kentucky nearly eight years ago. The dreams just wouldn't stop, and have been reappearing over and over again. Over the years, I was beginning to think that I had dreamed up all of it, the robot, everything. But I suppose the dreams confirmed that it did happen… I think. "Sorry ma'am." I said sheepishly. Ms Higginbottom gave me a final 'warning' glare before walking back to the blackboard to continue the lesson.

Sheesh, someone's got her panties in a twist.

* * *

Not gonna comment too much here, but this is (I suppose) a little break from my other stories.

I know many may be expecting something else, but her meeting with Barricade will be in play again further into the story (obviously)… if I ever get that far, which I cannot make any promises.

To clear this up, this will hopefully be a Sideswipe fiction. I think he really is my favourite autobot, but sometimes I switch between Ironhide and good ol' Bumblebee! And for all those hardcore trans-fans out there, I will have to admit that my knowledge of Transformers only go as far as the movies, and what I have read here in this fandom. So if there is any problem with the storyline or the characters, let me know with a review and I will see what I can do about it!

I suppose this is a little AU. I really don't know if Barricade was the first one here, which is probably not, but he thinks so... and lets just say for my sake that he is. (: Because it just goes with the story! So yes, a little AU, but just a slight bit. If things turn out that way, then I will definitely be posting this as an AU.

Anyways, not much happening here yet, and I don't know what I will put for the summary, but we'll see. Any ideas? Tell me what you think to find out more of what's going to happen. I think I'll be needing a lot of support with this. Anyways, thanks for reading!

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The bell rang throughout the entire school, signalling the end of the period. I let out a breath of relief. Honestly, Math was not my best subject, and it wasn't like Ms Higginbottom helped with her snarky attitude towards her students. I grumbled at the boring day and began gathering up my books. "Miss Darlington." Her shrill voice called out for me. I cringed. "Come see me please." She said.

I walked over nervously to Ms Higginbottom. Truthfully, she freaked me out. Sometimes her lips would purse to the point where I had to wonder if she had sour lemons for lunch. And it's not like the way her beady eyes narrowed at me from behind her glasses helped either. Her curly seventies hair was admittedly well kept, but her bright red lipstick colour clashed unevenly with her skin tone. By the time I got to her desk, most of the students had filed out to their last period. There were only several students who remained, waiting for me to finish up so they can ask her questions.

"Miss Darlington," she began. "I assume you realise why I have called you up here today."

I rubbed my neck nervously. "Uh… I'm sorry I fell asleep today…"

"No, it's not that." She said. "Well, a little, but you have to realise that you're failing my class!"

Well no duh. Math is just about the most ridiculously hard class out there. Of course I'm failing. "…Sorry...?" I said. It would've been redundant if I had said "yes".

If it was possible, her eyes narrowed even further. "Sorry? Is that all you have to say?"

"I guess so…"

Ms Higginbottom sighed irritably. "I don't know what has happened to you. I remember back when you were a freshman, you were getting the highest mark in my class!" Yeah, that was when the Math was easy… "I really want you to succeed in my class." I refrained from flinching. It was such a…'teacher' thing to say. "So…" she said. "I have decided to assign Samuel here to tutor you for extra credit." She gestured to someone behind me. "Do you know him?"

I turned around to face an oddly lanky looking boy. Ah, Sam Witwickity… or something like that. His hair was short and mousy, and I could begin to point out a few stray hairs on his chin. In all honesty, he didn't look particularly bright at all. In fact, he didn't seem much smarter than I was. But then again, he is the infamous Sam Witwickity… or something. He was the golden boy who went from being a dork, to becoming the school's most wanted boy (from the girl perspective – not that I keep track) just because Mikaela Banes, the 'hottest' girl in school dumped her jock boyfriend for him. The only thing I can think of commenting was: Why? Sam Witwickity… or something, was definitely not the type of boy Mikaela Banes would seem to want. I had expected her to choose someone more… ab possessing, and muscular. Albeit, her previous boyfriend, Trent, didn't seem too kind himself when they were dating. Then again, I suppose Mikaela wasn't the only factor in Sam's sudden rise in popularity. He also recently came in possession of a 76' Chevy Camaro a few months ago. Being a car junkie, I had to admit… it was _hot_. The car I mean… ew, not Sam.

But that didn't mean I knew him personally. Hell no. Dork or popular, never had I actually _spoken_ to him. He seemed unusually awkward with his way with words. "Uhm, no not particularly." I told Ms Higginbottom.

"Samuel, Julia, Julia, Samuel." She said almost boredly. "Are we done here?"

I gave her an annoyed look. Well, I could've done that myself. Don't get me wrong, it would be nice to have a tutor. Math was important if you're going to college, but did it really have to be _Sam_. I'm sure he would much rather be swapping spit with Mikaela than sit around to teach me what one plus one equals.

"Uh, yeah sure. Thanks again Ms Higginbottom." Sam said.

"Yeah, yeah." She said absentmindedly.

"Yeah, thanks." I said unintentionally sarcastically. Hey, I couldn't help it. I picked up my books to walk out of the classroom when I noticed Sam tailing close behind me.

"Hey." He said, walking in stride with me.

"Oh, hi." I said.

"Just call me Sam." He said randomly.

"Uh, sorry?"

"I mean, ah." He laughed at his own lack of eloquence. "Call me Sam, not Samuel."

Realisation hit me. "Oh! Yeah." I said. I already knew that, but whatever. "Call me Julie then. Julia makes me sound older."

Sam cracked a smile. "Yeah, sure. So I was kinda thinking…" he rubbed his neck at this. "I really need this extra credit to get an A, so do you think we can start meeting up as soon as possible?" I opened my mouth to reply but he started talking again. "You know what? You know what?" he said, putting his hands out to emphasize his idea. "I'll even try my best to teach you all that I know. I promise." He said. Did he think I was really going to bail on him like that? Whatever he has heard or thought about me, I wasn't_ that_ mean. Or maybe he was just an overly nervous type of person… or awkward… I tried to reply again only to be cut off once more. "Hey wait, how about I…"

"Sam." I said, cutting _him_ off. "Really, it's okay. I need this too." His mouth shut as he suddenly looked a little relieved. "How about tomorrow after school?" I asked. "At the auto shop classroom."

"Y-yeah." He said. "Sure, thanks." He smiled. I'll see you tomorrow then." He waved and darted off to last period. Yeah… definitely awkward.

I walked in a little late for auto class but Mr Kasanj never really cared. Okay, well he cared a little, but not if you're doing good in his class… which I'm happy to say that I am. In fact, I'm proud to say that I'm at the top of my class… for once. Jack owns an auto shop where he forces me to work. He says by working there, I'm repaying what I owe him for all that he's done for me (which is essentially nothing). But in a way, I didn't mind so much. Working at an auto shop actually opened up my mind more about cars. Like I said before, I'm a car junkie. I can't get enough of 'em. You have no more use for those car parts? Hand them over! I'll take good care of them!

Anyways, at the shop, Jack doesn't work there, mostly because he doesn't know enough about cars to fix them, so he hired Paul to take care of things there. Paul was… decent. I don't think he knows that his big boss, Jack, is my legal guardian. I think he thinks that I'm just this kid Jack hired for kicks. But Paul taught me most of everything I know. He's not much of a talker (but neither am I), and he's really strict, but gives praise when it's necessary. In a way, he's like a mentor. A really good one actually.

So anyways, I went out and took the mini engine I was working on. Really, I was actually done, but I knew I could make it work a lot better if I spent just a little more time on it. I took out a rag to wipe away some oil on the gears when I felt a familiar sensation run across my lower back. "Hey hot stuff." A male voice said.

I rolled my eyes and swatted away the hand. "Jake." I acknowledged him. Jake was this ugly guy in the class who always seemed to have a problem with his engine. Most of the time, he goes and bothers Mikaela (who's grade is following closely behind mine), but when it comes to his work, he comes to me. She was just hotter. Jake really wasn't a bad guy. He was funny, and nice (most of the time)… but he just enjoyed groping girls in the wrong places and cracking out perverse jokes… No biggie. I couldn't say the same about Mikaela though.

Granted, I've never really _talked _to her, but I knew she had it easy. She had a completely perfect life. She was beautiful, popular, and had so many people going for her. In a sense, I suppose you can say I'm _jealous_ of her… I suppose I am. Just a little. I'm not jealous of her boyfriend, or the little knowledge of cars she has (compared to me), but I'm jealous how easy she has it. She has nothing to bother her, nothing to deter her from going to college, and nothing standing in her way of becoming the most popular girl in school. She was no queen bee, but she was far from being a dork either. Very far.

Anyways, Jake isn't that bad. Honestly, most people don't have a problem with him. Some girls tend to freak out with his closeness, but they just didn't realise that the more you freak out, the more satisfaction Jake obtains. It is always best just to keep your cool with him. I turned my attention to him. "So what do you need help with now?" I asked sarcastically.

He grinned.

* * *

Yesterday went on like usual. After school, I took the bus to get to work, did some homework at the desk, got a ride home from Paul, ate, showered, and slept. Thankfully, Jack had not been home yet, but I did hear him get in late in the middle of the night, with some squeals from a mystery woman. Another whore no doubt. He's been bringing some in more and more frequently, but as long as I didn't have to see or clean up after them, it was fine I suppose.

I woke up the next morning with the bright sun shining on my face. I groaned. Normally I enjoyed the sun on my face when I woke up, but today it was just annoying. It hurt my eyes. I groggily rose from my bed. I heard Jack shuffling downstairs. Great. Usually he would be off early in the morning to god knows where, but today he wasn't. I'm positive that it was a bad omen. But if I didn't have to deal with him last night, it probably meant that I would have to do it in the morning.

Sighing, I freshened up in the bathroom, then pulled on a random pair of jeans and t-shirt for the day. It was already mid December, but the weather in Nevada never ceased to amaze me. It was so random. It was a lot different than where I grew up, but then again, maybe I was just getting older. I got to my bathroom and looked at my reflection. My hair was an absolute mess, but I didn't find school a big enough of an occasion for me to run a brush through it. It just wasn't worth it.

I went downstairs and mentally slapped myself for leaving my school bag in the kitchen. I was really planning on just leaving the house, slipping by Jack unnoticed, but this just made it impossible. I slowly stuck my head through the door, peaking into the kitchen. Too bad Jack heard me coming down the stairs and was waiting for me. "Brat," he said. Over the years, that name just stuck with me. It was a habit for Jack now. "What did I say about leaving your things all over the house? You have to clean up after yourself. I'm not your slave." Hah, like the beer bottles on the floor isn't your mess.

But I couldn't talk back to him. I just couldn't. I was scared really. My fear of him never really subsided, and because of my fear, he had never had the excuse to really hurt me. The one time where I had back talked him, had actually earned me a hit. But that was the only time I could remember where he had _physically_ hurt me. He just enjoyed bashing me whenever he could, which really wasn't a lot. I didn't see him too much. "Sorry." I said. But ever since he had hit me, every time I would talk to him, I would evaluate his features, to calculate his emotions. It was a precaution. Today he looked weary. If he had a one night stand last night, it was no wonder he was so tired. He didn't look like the type to be good in bed. I'm just being honest. He had large bags under his eyes, and his hair was all messy, making him seem more like the previous alcoholic he was. He's been better with the drinking for the past three months, but I knew he wouldn't last very long. For him, alcohol was like heaven and sex put together. Very promising.

I quietly picked up my bag and stuffed a sandwich I had made last night in it before walking towards the door. Skipping breakfast was a good trade in for not having to deal with Jack… especially in the morning. He was not a morning person. Yep, definitely worth it.

Unfortunately for me however, breakfast was not enough of a trade this morning. Jack kept talking about me. "I got a call from Ms Higginbitch today." He said. "She sounds like a real pain to me, but the interesting thing though is that she told me you were failing her Math class." He sneered. "Who fails Math? It's so easy." I held back my snort, scared of what he would do. The image of him beating my mom never left me. And I somehow doubted that he had passed Math either. Despite of how he may look, he was an actual idiot. Worse than Jake even. And instead of submitting to his comment, I held my face firmly towards the door, waiting for him to finish. I have learned that walking away from Jack never did any good. It only made it worse. "Well? Are you going to explain yourself?"

"I-I'm beginning my sessions with a tutor."

"A _tutor_? Only idiots need a tutor. Who's paying for you anyways?"

I looked down, eager to avoid his gaze. "I don't need to pay. The guy is doing it for extra credit." I replied.

He scoffed. "As to be expected. Who would want to put up with _you_? You're just as annoying and useless as your mother." I didn't get offended by his insult at Mom though. In actual reality, Mom really was ignorant. She was stupid enough to leave her only daughter (I think) with her evil, evil ex-husband. Real smart Mom. "Hey, didn't that useless whore ever teach you any manners? Look at me when I'm speaking brat." I refused to. I knew that if I did, I would start to cry.

I normally never cried. Not even when I watch a really heartbreaking movie in class, where all the girls, and most of the guys would begin bawling their eyes out, nor when Jack accidently killed the kitten I had brought home one day, and not even when my alien robot left me (if that did indeed happen)! No, Jack was the only thing that could make me tear up anymore. Every time I look at him, I would think back of all I have lost and suffered because of him. He was the reason why I had such a troubled childhood. He is the reason why I am so troubled now. It was all his fault. All of it.

"Are you even listening brat? Or are you going to _cry_?" he taunted. "God, you really are an idiot. Come here!" He grabbed my arm and pulled me up the stairs. I gave a quiet yelp, trying to stop myself from tripping up the stairs. I felt the strength of his fingers beginning to bruise my arm. His fingers wrapped around it so easily, it seemed that if he tried hard enough, he would really be able to break my bones. Jack was big. I sometimes absentmindedly wonder how often he really goes to work out. He nearly knocked my door off its hinges as he stormed into my room and threw me on the floor. "Did I not tell you before that you had to respect me?"

Yes, you did, but eye contact was never part of the deal until now.

"Huh?" he yelled, picking me up from the floor again, pushing me against the wall. It was then I smelt his breath, rotten with alcohol. Oh god, really! It was eight in the morning and already he was buzzed. As I had expected, Alcoholic Jack was back, and whether or not he was here to stay, I did not know. My mind flashed back into the memory of Jack when he was doing this to Mom. I couldn't help but note the irony of it all. I was in the exact same position Mom was in all those years ago. This would be the second time he was violent with me. It was frightening. What if these encounters became more frequent? I had tried my best to avoid it for all these years, but perhaps it was just inevitable. "Are you listening?" He yelled again, slamming me into the wall once more. His fingernails dug into my shoulders, drawing blood.

"Yeah! Yes!" I cried out in pain. The quicker I replied, the sooner this would all over over, and the sooner I would be able to get to school, away from him.

"Yes what? What did I do that you answered 'yes' to?" he growled.

"You told me that I had to show you respect."

"And did you?" I didn't answer. I closed my eyes, shuddering away from him. "Well?"

"N-no. I'm sorry."

Growling, he threw me on the floor once more. "You had better be sorry. And don't let it ever happen again!" He roared, pointing and incriminating finger at me. "Idiot brat scum!" he muttered, walking away. He punched my door against the wall as he walked out, creating a loud 'bang'. I cringed at it. Hopefully that won't be my new nickname. 'Idiot brat scum' wasn't very catchy if you asked me.

I winced at the pain in my shoulders, and my now sore arms. I tiptoed into the bathroom and examined myself. Oh, they really weren't that bad. I sighed in relief. Though my shoulders hurt the most from his fingernails, the medium sized purplyness of the bruise on my arms looked more serious. I quickly cleaned up as fast as I could and grabbed my cousin George's old sweater. The only reason why I kept it was because he was dead. He was stationed at Qatar and was killed a year ago. His sweater was a good memento and I always felt better when I was wearing it. It was a quite large on me, but it was the first thing I had grabbed from my room before rushing out the door. I was late.

Cousin George and Aunt Clara were on Mom's side of the family, and I no longer know where they live, since Jack keeps us apart, but Aunt Clara had my bank account number... if you catch my drift. Sometimes I would check my account balance and gawk at the sudden increase of zeros. As for her relationship with Mom, they were never close, and when Mom had run off, she had never contacted Aunt Clara about it. Despite their lack of closeness as sisters, Aunt Clara had once said to me (when I was four) that she saw good in me, and that I should ignore my parents' constant bickering as best I can, and they will work it out. I did, but she was wrong.

Speed walking, I dashed out of my driveway, mumbling a 'Good morning' to Mrs Torres next door. Mrs Torres was a really nice old lady who looked, and seemed to be a little lonely. She lived all by herself after her husband passed away a few years ago, but every time I saw her, she would always have a smile on her face. I couldn't say the same for myself.

I never really said much to her though. I barely knew her! I only say hi when I see her, which is really not much considering that I usually leave early and come home around dinner time.

"Oh good morning dear- Oh!" She did a small gasp at the sad features on my face. I probably looked terrible. I can already imagine my face, blotchy with tears, and my eyes all swollen. "Are you okay sweetie?"

"Yes, thanks for worrying Mrs Torres. I have to go now. I'm late." I ran off without saying anything. She was a sweet old lady, but like most of them, she was too curious for her own good.

When I got to school, I figured that since I was already late, it didn't really matter if I stopped by the washroom for a final face check for any signs of tears or crying. I found myself almost thinking of the term '_leaking'_, but that was only because of my rabid dreams of robots.

Conspicuously, as I walked across the courtyard, I missed a silver Corvette Stingray and a gold edition of a Gemballa Mirage GT zoom by. Boy was that my loss… not that I noticed whatsoever...

* * *

Okay, again no autobots really in this chapter, but I think the ending makes it pretty clear that there is a Sideswipe running around… and when there's a Sideswipe, there will always be a Sunstreaker around… somewhere ;)

Chapter 1 and 2 are basically talking about Julie's life right now. I know it's a little boring, but cut me some slack please (: Since her life is just about done, you know that the real story will start soon! I'll hopefully get it posted soon but again, I don't make any promises.

I actually have a question: How do you feel about my paragraph spacing? Way back when, I didn't know how to space my paragraphs properly according to quoting... so if you read my other stories, there is quite a bit of over-spacing (though the quoting rule is correct). In this story, I am trying to make longer paragraphs that make sense. Right now, I don't know if I'm screwing myself over or not. I like it when I am reading decent sized paragraphs, but the thing is that I'm wondering if it looks cluttered and is it easier to read if it is more spaced. _Please give me some feedback on this. I would love to know your opinion. _The only con side of this is that my chapters don't look as long anymore... which is sad ):

Anyhow, a big thanks to all my alert-ers and favourite-rs because I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of them in Chapter 1. There wasn't really anything in Chapter 1 to begin with! So thank you for those!

And A BIGGER THANKS to my total of TWO reviewers for Chapter 1! Oh my gosh, I didn't think I would receive two, mostly because Chapter 1 was decent, but not really a central part of the main story. So a big thanks to: **lunahermionemalfoyy** and **xxIronhideForeverxx**! Couldn't have done this without you!

The more I receive, the more motivated I get and to write! I'm quite excited now.

For any of you who are interested, I actually intended for the title to be **My Alien Robot(s)**…. But since brackets, nor slashes seem to show up for titles, we're all stuck with My Alien Robot. Shame… It would've made so much more sense if the brackets were there…. Oh well. Can't do anything about it. Anyways…

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

At the end of the day, Sam came by the shop, parking his Camaro outside of the garage. I wish I had enough guts to ask him if I could get a better look at it, but I knew it would be awfully awkward since I didn't know him too well. And like in a cheesy movie, Mikaela went up to him and gave him a rather passionate kiss. I couldn't help but think how the scene vaguely reminded me of a familiar Hollister ad.

I turned away from them to clean up my work and wash my hands. I had talked to Paul yesterday, letting him know that I wouldn't be going to work today and tomorrow. It would be pointless for me to go to work if I was going to leave one or two hours later, but hopefully Paul will keep this a secret from Jack anyways. Technically, Jack already knew I had tutor today, but that didn't mean his brain connected the dots, and came to the conclusion that I wouldn't be going to work! He was an idiot that way, and tutor or no tutor, he would definitely get angry if he found out that I wasn't at the shop.

"Hey, Julie!" I turned back to look at Sam, his books already sprawled across a table. That was weird. I swear he was making with Mikaela just a second ago. I glanced over at Mikaela and found her reading a car magazine across the room, waiting for Sam to finish I guess. "You ready?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, give me a sec!" I called back, wiping my hands on a rag. Well, here goes nothing. Today, I was sure Sam will see the type of idiot I am when it comes to Math. In a sense, I'm slightly relieved that Ms Higginbottom decided to assign me a peer tutor. I actually needed this and who knows, maybe some good will come out of it.

"So, we'll start with Section One then." He said, opening to the first page of the textbook.

Was he serious? The first three sections were all basic review. Literally only an idiot wouldn't know how to do them… like Jack. "Well, I was thinking since I'm pretty familiar with the first three sections, we could start on Section Four." I said.

Sam looked taken aback for a second. "Oh, uh… yeah sure." He replied as he began rubbing his neck nervously. "So Section Four… " He paused. "Right." He flipped a bunch of pages, trying to refocus. "Trig proofs…" he muttered, reading the title. He raised his finger to highlight the examples. "So uh… Hm… Hold on." He took a few seconds to read over the page. "So uh… basically you… Umm…. Let me think…. Hold on now, I know this." He looked up at me, pointing a finger. "I know I know this." He then squeezed his eyes really tight, thinking hard.

In the distance I vaguely heard Mikaela seem to talk to herself, but dismissed it without looking at her. Whatever she was doing, it's not my problem.

Sam snapped his eyes open again two seconds later. "You know those times, when you can't remember something, but you just thought about it like yesterday? Yeah? You know them? Well I'm having one of those moments right now, but I definitely know this. Hold on." He looked away to think. Truthfully, the more he talked, the more I questioned his knowledge on the subject.

A foreign voice in close proximity behind us made me jump. "Math huh? I didn't think you were the Math type of guy Sam."

"Oh I like proofs!" Another foreign voice said.

Sam and I both turned around and we were met with two pairs of piercing blue eyes. It only seemed natural since these two in particular are twins. They both looked to be around 20 years old, and were identical, save the hair, where although they both had it gelled up, highlighting their strong face structure, the one on the left was a brunette while the one on the right was a blonde. They both had a nice even tan, wore similar expensive looking sneakers, the same brand jeans, and slightly different tight-fitting t-shirts that might I add, really made their arms look… nice.

I was slightly surprised at myself when I found that I was, for the lack of a better term, 'checking them out'. I normally don't pay too much attention to looks or anything, but I had to admit, the twins were sure lookers. I mean, if Sam and Mikaela came out of a Hollister ad, these two would have come out of some Armani Exchange one.

Sam gave them both a look of surprise. "Oh hey, I didn't know you guys were coming."

The blonde one replied. "We just came by to talk to Bee-… I mean Brody. We had a message from big boss guy." His eyes shifted towards me warily. I couldn't help but give him a puzzled look. What did I do? And who is Brody?

I looked pass the twins to see if there was anyone else in the shop, and was once again surprised to see another blonde male, lounging lazily in Sam's Camaro. He wasn't there before, was he? His highlighted hair was a little longer than the twins, but still managed to stay sticking up, and his metal bumblebee earring gleamed oddly at me. If it was on anyone else, I would've thought the earring would have looked ridiculously stupid, but it seemed to strangely work for this 'Brody' guy. He shifted his ankles a bit, where they were crossed, sticking out of the driver's window. He sure looked comfortable.

"Yep, message delivered." The brunette grinned, using his raspy voice. "Sorry, I think I'm losing my voice or something." He smiled again, looking at Sam first, then rested his eyes on me. "So how goes the tutoring Brody told us about?"

Oh. He was asking _me_. "Fine I guess." I said a little nervously. Why was I nervous you may ask? Who knows? In their presence, I found my heartbeat race just a little faster. It could've been because I was… scared of them? Or I don't know. I don't even understand it! "We haven't gotten far, and Sam can't seem to remember how to do proofs." I said, as I felt the right side of my lips lift. I couldn't seem to keep my eyes on the brunette, so I shifted them onto his twin, which seemed to work, since the blonde wasn't really paying any attention to the conversation.

"Don't worry about it, I know this stuff." Sam said, trying to reassure me. "You know what?" he asked. "I'll figure it out now. I mean if you really want me to, I'll figure it out right now for you." He said, taking my words as a challenge. He turned back to the textbook. Pencil in hand, he tapped it irritatingly against the metal table, thinking. "Just give me a sec." He said.

The blonde twin chuckled and moved away back to Sam's Camaro. I was surprised when the brunette twin pulled up a stool on the other side of me. "Done yet?" he inquired, smiling.

"Hold on man, this takes _focus_." He emphasized. "Okay?"

"Whatever you say Sam." His voice, filled with humour. He turned to me and grinned. "Don't know your name yet." He said. He lifted up his hand. "I'm Sean, but you can call me Sides. Everyone does." Sides? That was a weird nickname.

I took his hand to shake it and found him squeezing it a little harder than I would have liked. "I'm Julie." I said. "How did 'Sean' turn into 'Sides'?" I asked interestedly.

Sides shrugged. "It's a military nickname I guess. I'm more used to Sides than Sean now."

"You're in the military?" I asked in amazement. Well it was no wonder why he had such a nice body.

"Yeah, so is Sunny over there." He pointed over to his twin brother who was talking to Brody. "We-…"

"_Guys_." Sam complained, interrupting us. "I can't concentrate if you're both _talking_."

"Give me that." Sides mused, reaching over to the textbook. He took my pencil. "There's a simple procedure for this." He said. He quickly skimmed over the page and promptly crossed out the entire example, putting Sam and me into shock. He took a fresh piece of paper and began writing down his method in a messy scrawl. There were a few weird symbols I haven't seen before on the side, but I didn't pay any mind to them since the stuff I _could_ read made sense. "First you try using the equals method, where you try to make both sides of the equal sign… well, equal. So you'd get this far into the equation, then you can get rid of the denominator, which usually only works if the equation is in that format, but..."

"Sides, you've completely lost me." Sam said, looking blown away and completely confused of what was on the paper.

"Wait, I think I kind of get it." I said, running my hand over the numbers. It was messy, but I found my way through his odd font. "It's all trial and error. So since you can't get rid of the denominator here, you go back and substitute the rest with the equations on the formula sheet."

"Yeah, that's right!" Sides nearly exclaimed, looking quite pleased with himself. "Sam, you're dumb." He said bluntly. I couldn't help but giggle at the comment. He smiled at me, but looked away as he coughed to clear his voice. I felt a little bad for him and found myself absently wondering how his great normal voice usually sounded.

"I am not!" Sam replied defensively "I'm-…"

"Hey Sides…" Mikaela voice called from across the room.

"Yeah?" His attention diverted to her. I subconsciously cursed her for interrupting our conversation. I almost forgot she was there!

"What happened to your car?" She stood up from her chair and threw her magazine to the side. "It looks pretty beat up…" She disappeared when she walked outside to get a better look at it.

"Let's see it." I said to Sam, who nodded in reply. The three of us walked out and I felt my heart nearly stop at the sight of three beautiful cars. One of them was of course Sam's Camaro, which I find myself praising it nearly every day. But parked next to the yellow Camaro, were two cars I didn't think I'd ever see up close _ever_. Not in this life time anyways.

Directly next to Sam's car was a gold edition of a Gemballa Mirage GT. It looked so_ shiny_ as it basked in its own glory, I really wanted to touch it and almost did, but I thought it would have been rude. After all, this wasn't some car dealership or anything. "Whoah." I breathed. "Love the Mirage." I said in awe.

In my peripheral vision, I saw Sunny puff out his chest in pride. "Thanks, I like it too." Geez, if I knew that this was all it took to get on Sunny's good side, I would have complimented him earlier.

But Mikaela's attention was on the car next to the Mirage; A silver Corvette Stingray. Despite of the slight bit of smoke coming out of its hood, and its worn out tires, it still looked completely, and fantastically awesome. It seemed like nothing could dull its gleam that was caused by the sun reflecting off of it. "Double whoah." I said. "Is that yours?" I asked Sides.

Sides puffed out his chest, similarly to how Sunny did. "Yep. Looks nice doesn't it?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I stared at the yellow Camaro, and found Brody staring right at me, as if waiting for me to say something. What did he want? I restrained myself from looking right at Brody, and instead stared at his car. Sorry Camaro… I still love you but… , … I'm sorry.

I turned back to the Stingray. "It does look nice, but there is definitely something wrong under the hood." I said.

"Do you mind if we take a look?" Mikaela asked, her fingers already under the metal, preparing to open it.

Sunny gave her an unsure look. "Do you even know what you're doing?"

Mikaela's face seemed to harden at him. "We're both at the top of our class, and Julie's dad owns an auto shop downtown."

Huh, I didn't know she knew that about me. I was actually glad that Mikaela stood up for me, even though Sunny was questioning her more so than me.

Sides gave a barky laugh. I didn't know what was so funny, but I found his laugh infectious. "Calm down Sunny. It's okay." He said and turned to Mikaela and me. "Go ahead, let's see what you can do."

Oh, that sounded like a challenge.

I went to stand by Mikaela as she popped the hood. I saw Sunny lean over suspiciously to see what we were doing but Sides seemed fine surprisingly, since it is _his_ car. When she opened it, we were both met with rising smoke, puffing out at us. Sunny laughed. "Wow…" he said.

Mikaela glared at him. "Oh be quiet Sunny." She didn't sound too threatening, but instead sounded a little playful.

When the smoke hit my lungs, it forced me to cough and I noticed Sides giving me a small apologetic look. Why? I didn't know. The bit of heat from the car made me unusually warm, so I threw my sweater aside. I then leaned back into the engine with Mikaela. "It's not so bad." I said, fiddling with some piston rings. "From the way it was smoking, I thought it would have been pretty damaged. And…"

Mikaela looked at me. "The connecting rod looks a little damaged so…"

"The crankshaft isn't moving properly." I finished. She gave me a smile. Suddenly, I decided that I didn't find her as annoying as I usually thought of her. It was actually kind of nice. For a moment there, it was almost like we were _friends. _Now, I at least know the real extent of her knowledge on cars.

"Wrench?" She offered, grinning.

Mikaela and I ended up fiddling with just the minor problems. I was actually quite impressed with her. She was hot _and_ smart. How convenient for her. I suppose I'm not as bitter towards her as I was previously, but that still didn't mean I actually _liked_ her. "You should probably bring it to a proper shop to get it fixed more. Our school doesn't have the equipment to do much about your car." She said, slightly annoyed. She suddenly turned to me, like she had a good idea in her head. "They should bring it to your dad's shop!"

Oh. That's… probably not a very good idea. I didn't like it when people I knew saw me working. It wasn't like I was embarrassed or anything, I mean, compared to McDonalds, working at the auto shop was much better. I just can't explain how I feel about it. I felt maybe… maybe vulnerable? I can't find a word for it now, but I'll keep it in mind. "Oh yeah." I said, not making eye contact. "Sure."

"It's okay." Sunny sniffed. "We have our own mechanic around here. We _trust_ him."

"Sunny!"

Thank you Sunny! I felt a little relieved since they probably won't visit me now. No need for any further embarrassment. "Haha, it's okay. If I had such a nice car, I wouldn't trust just any mechanic either." Mikaela gave him a disapproving look anyways.

Since Sam had finally admitted defeat at tutoring, he gave up his post as tutor for the day while Sides had taken over for him. At first I felt sympathy for Sides, since he had to put up with me, but it didn't seem like he found it a painful experience at all. I sure would have if I was in his position.

Me? Well I _definitely_ didn't have a painful experience. Actually, there were times where I felt a little dumb for not knowing something, but Sides was really encouraging. He would occasionally admit that a concept is easy, but he would also say it's okay if I didn't know. Strangely, the way he looked at me made me feel a little flattered. He would smile a lot, and ask if I understood, and if I didn't, he would explain it clearly, flashing his white teeth. Now and then he would make a funny joke about the math, and says things like 'dropping logs' when he would be explaining logarithms. He was rather successful in keeping the atmosphere easygoing. Definitely not a painful experience at all.

The next thing I knew, when I looked at my watch, it was already 5:30. I looked around to see what the others were doing only to find that they were gone! "They left a while ago." Sides chuckled. "Didn't you notice?"

"No, not really. My mind was too busy proving that these equations are true." I laughed.

He echoed my own laugh with a chuckle. "Fair enough." Then suddenly, as quick as a torpedo, his eyes narrowed at me, and not at my face either. I gave him a puzzling look, silently questioning him. Ignoring me, he lifted a finger to trace a small part of my arm. I felt my whole spine quiver at his touch, and from the electricity that seemed to have coursed through me. Sides didn't seem to notice though. "How'd you get that?" He asked softly. "I can't believe I didn't notice it earlier."

I followed his hard gaze onto my arm and gave myself a mental slap in the face. A _hard_ mental slap in the face. How could I be so stupid? I watched, shocked, as his finger still continued to trace over the four finger line bruise that was freshly purple from this morning's encounter with Jack. God, I am so _stupid_. "Oh… I uhh…" I quickly thought up of an excuse. "It's funny really. I was walking up the stairs yesterday and I fell… _going up_." I tried to laugh genuinely but wasn't sure if he was convinced. "Hm… It's kind of cold in here." I lied. "What happened to my sweater? Have you seen it?" I asked a little rushed. Honestly, I felt a little embarrassed by the ugly bruise. It was ugly, and a sign of weakness. It was almost shameful. "Oh there it is!" I laughed nervously again, grabbing it, and pulling it on.

"It's 68.6232 degrees right now." He said slightly robotically. "There's no way you're cold."

I cursed Nevada's constant quick changes in weather meanwhile forcing my heartbeat to calm down. Being nervous doesn't ever bring any good. Hah, I should start listening to my own advice, maybe then I'll do something right for a change. "Haha, err, I'm just a cold skinned person. I've been told living in warmer areas would be perfect for me." I then tried to quickly change the subject before he voiced any other of his suspicions. "How about you?" I asked abruptly. Ugh… lame.

I've been told I've been very adaptable to weather." He smiled. "I can't say the same about Sunny though. He prefers the cold." His eyes continued glancing from my arm to my face.

Yes, thank you for changing the topic of conversation Sides. You just saved me from immense awkwardness. "What the? Why's he in Nevada then?"

Sides shrugged. "It's close to base I guess, and Brody is here, so we like to hang with him from time to time." He suddenly completely shifted his gaze from my covered arm, to my face, his blue eyes piercing into mine. Sadly, my heartbeat began to quicken again, and his sudden grin was a sure indication that he had heard it. Crap.

I swear we were staring at each other for at _least_ ten seconds before I broke away. "I… should get going now." I said, gathering my belongings. I needed to get away from Sides. He was so… distracting. So distracting that things were happening to me… _weird_ things. It was either that, or I was coming down with some strange heart disease… Yeah, at seventeen. And it didn't help much that he had now seen my bruise.

"Oh." He said with what I swear was disappointment. "Do you need a ride?" He asked quickly. Oh Sides, if I didn't know any better, you are _trying_ to make me blush. I was again, a little flattered at the sentiment.

"Actually, I need to drop by the store to get some groceries… It's all the way in the city so—"

"I don't mind." He said quickly again. Not giving me a chance to decline, he grabbed my bag and books out of my hands and walked outside. "Let's go."

I followed him nervously. What I really wanted to do was just go home by myself. As much as how appealing spending the rest of the day with Sides was, who might I remind you, had a possible career in modelling, I felt just a little uneasy with him. I don't know why, I just do. "Are you sure? I'm sure you have better things to do than-…"

"Jules," he said, tossing my stuff in the back. The use of another nickname somehow made my face feel warmer than usual. "It's okay." He grinned at me.

I sighed and nodded in silent defeat, but when I got to his car, I just stood there in front, trying to refrain from drooling at his vehicle (again). He gave me an odd look when he opened the passenger door. "My car doesn't bite you know…" He mused, quirking an eyebrow.

I shook myself out of my own thoughts. "I—I know, it's just… I've always wanted to ride… no not even that, _touch_ a Stingray."

Sides gave his seemingly trademark smirk. "Dreams really do come true." He chuckled. "Get in."

* * *

Okay, so I indeed started this chapter the day before, but since I had too much to finish and edit, I had to wait for the next day (today) to complete it. And wow, what a disappointment that version was, I must tell you. This version's quality is about average, but the older version of this chapter was just embarrassingly lame. It was all quick paced with no description, no real relatability with the character. Just a load of crap. So that's why it took me a little longer than I wanted to to complete this, even if the chapter is a little short. Sorry, but hey, it's still a fast update if I do say so myself.

I'm still iffy on the paragraph spacing. You'd do me a solid if you gave me some feedback on that. It looks cluttered, but this is my first time trying to make my paragraph look more flushed out, and the quoting rule still applies… I'm just not sure how easy it is to read. So please, if you can, comment on that.

And oh jeez, the amount of feedback I got from Chapter 2 way passed my expectations (: This whole time I've been writing, my goal was to have a lengthy fiction with about ten reviews per chapter… that's just my hope, which is reflected off my writing. I think I might actually make that goal! I always have lots of admiration for authors who can achieve that status, and I hope to hold that status one day… I just didn't expect it to be so close this soon in writing this fiction!

I'm really glad, and it's true, the more reviews a writer receives, the more motivated and dedicated they are to said fiction.

So once again, a big thanks to ALL alert-ers and favourite-rs. I'm really glad and thankful that you enjoy the story so far, and who knows, maybe I'll hear from you soon!

And A HUGE THANKS, to all the reviewers from Chapter 2: **ultimateanime12, 2GrayBoys, angelixlight, nightmare91, liz1234, **and **lunahermionemalfoyy**. Honestly, I could not have done it without ALL the feedback I got, and I just want you to know how grateful I am. Thanks again! Chapter 4's construction will be beginning soon, and I hope to hear from all you readers soon!

As always,

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

**P.S. **Regular updates on the progress of chapters for all my stories are posted in my profile. Check it out! And there is also a small excerpt about my upcoming short hiatus this month. See profile for more details.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Sides drove fast… Really fast.

I don't think you comprehend what I'm saying… I mean, we were going _really _fast. Right now, we were cruising by so many cars I was sure we had passed at least one police car, and yet, there was no sirens blaring for us to stop. I shifted my eyes over to nervously glance at Sides. He was sitting there lazily as if going 165 km per hour was normal. I saw his gaze draw towards me and quickly looked away.

He chuckled. "You don't have to be nervous you know. If you're dream was to ride in a Stingray, it's only worthwhile if you go fast." He flashed his teeth at me.

Sides and Sunny's twin trademark may be their piercing blue eyes, but Sides trademark alone is his beaming smile. He uses it all the time! For example, we just got kicked out of the grocery store because Sides had insisted on running around, _fast_, pushing a shopping cart… with me inside. I had obviously declined at first, but he had resumed picking me up and tossing me into the metal basket (the big one, mind you).

At first I was strongly embarrassed, I mean, how often do you see a seventeen year old riding in a shopping cart? But then again, you don't see the twenty-two year old pushing a seventeen year old in a shopping cart either. It was 6:00pm at the time, but that didn't mean the store was empty. But Sides was strong. He pushed the shopping cart along the isles, letting me pick out whatever I needed. We went fast.

How fast? Well let's just say that we hit more than one other shopping cart/(blind/normal)person/children/dog along the way. With the wind rushing through my hair, and playing bumper cars being a favourite of mine, I must admit, it was fun, regardless of how many times we had to say sorry to our purely accidental victims. That was until the store manager forced us to pay for our things immediately and kicked us out. But at least I got my things! And throughout the whole thing, Sides smile never seemed to falter. He was a really happy sort of guy… not my type I don't think, but I had a feeling that the day when that smile falters, it will make me sad.

"What makes you think I'm nervous?" I asked, my tone sounding unconvincing even to myself. I suddenly wished he would keep his eyes on the road instead of me, but I couldn't say that _outloud_.

"Well, you are gripping the safety handle awfully tight." He snorted, obviously amused. "And who are you kidding, your jaw is definitely clenching."

I immediately relaxed my jaw, only to find myself uncomfortable and then resumed clenching. Wow. "Okay, maybe I'm a little nervous. I've never gone this fast though."

"You really don't need to worry." His eyes continued to focus on me. "You're safe in here." He said softly. Dumbfounded, I stared back at him with probably the stupidest look on my face as my hearbeat raced again. Oh god, not this again! What was he _doing _to me? "There's a first time for everything." He smiled. Always the charmer. I looked away and sighed. I suppose that's just the way he always is. To every girl no doubt. But despite his unconvincing argument of the safety in the confines of his vehicle, I found myself relaxing, sinking into the seat anyways. I let a small smile form on my face.

There was a moment of comfortable silence before I decided to speak again. "Your voice sounds better." I said, more as a question than a statement.

Sides formed a wry grin. His stare made me a little nervous again because no matter how good you are at driving, you can't possibly know where you're going without look through the windshield! It didn't help that he was speeding well over the limit! "Let's just say, someone gave me a quick uh... fix." He smiled as if there was a joke I wasn't aware of.

Uh… okay.

Another silence ensued, this time a little more awkward… but that just might be from my doing. And I could tell Sides had noticed too. "Are you okay?" He said, his face looking more worried than I had expected it to.

"Yeah." I gave him a small smile, but sometimes I was just not a talker. I hope he figured that out, and I think he did because he finally looked away, but had a small smile on his face, which seemed to have magically lightened the awkwardness.

I had told Sides my address previously and before I knew it (and no wonder since he was driving so fast), the Stingray had pulled up in my driveway, but he kept the engine running. For a moment, I paused before clicking open the seatbelt, which seemed to be suspiciously hard to press open, but I waved the thought away because somehow I could feel an awkward moment coming up. "Thanks for driving me all around town today." I said quickly, trying to avoid another silence. I began to twist my torso to get my things from the back seat when I felt a strong force of impact crash on my head. _Sides'_ 'strong force of impact' from his head. "Ow!" I yelped. You know that pain in your head where it starts at the top of your skin, but then begins to burn deeper into your body? Well that's what I was feeling... but in my head.

"Oh my gosh Jules, I'm so sorry." Sides reacted, with a pained look on his face. "I'm really, really, really sorry." He said yet again. "I'm so stupid, I should've known… I—"

"Sides!" I exclaimed, still clenching my forehead, which seemed to shut him up. "Really, it's fine." The dreaded silence came, but it wasn't awkward at all. I started to laugh, which eased his hard worry lines. "But you have a _really_ hard head." I grinned. "It's like made out of metal!"

Sides laughed extra hard at that, but maybe he was just trying to ease the mood more. "I've been told that many times." He said, in between laughs.

I continued to giggle, turning around to grab my stuff. I couldn't grab it all at once from the back, so Sides helped me grab the rest… this time, _after_ I did my round. "Thanks." I smiled at him, taking the rest of my things from his hands.

"No problem. I had fun driving you around today anyways. We should do it some more. You do after all _love_ my Stingray." He smirked.

"Yes, it's my _fav_." I said with a little sarcasm.

"Ahh…" he furthered his smirk. "But all things unfortunately, come with a fee… including today's little drive."

I gave him a mock outraged look. "Well, I didn't know about that! If I knew, I would have hitched a ride with _Sunny_. And I think embarrassing me at the store is enough to pay off today's fee, AND the next."

He shrugged playfully. "Nope, doesn't count. Sorry, now I have to collect the fee." He whipped out his hand as if asking for cash, his fingers moving up and down.

"And what is this fee then?" I smiled curiously.

"Hmm…" he said, giving a look of ponder, but I knew by the way his eyes gleamed that he already knew what the fee was. Knowing him, he had this planned out all along! Jerk. "I _am_ feeling quite hungry…" he said, wiggling his eyebrows in a comical manner. I rolled my eyes, smiling. "And you did just buy _so much food_."

I gave him a look of surprise. He _did not_. "Did you just invite yourself in?"

It was his turn to mock a look. "I suppose I did." He laughed. "That, and I also insinuated that you eat a lot."

I slapped his arm a bit harder than I had intended, but he seemed unaffected. I calculated for a bit as I glanced at the clock. It was 6:42pm. Hmm… Jack _does_ usually come home around twelve and one… It wouldn't hurt if Sides came in for just a second would it? Even if it's a little stupid, considering that I had just met him today. Is it weird if I say yes? Hmm… "I don't eat _that_ much." I smiled. "Just an occasional dinosaur or two." I shrugged playfully.

"Well," he said with a little finality. "Dinosaur eater, a.k.a Monster," he addressed, grinning. "Are you going to make me a sandwich?"

I laughed. "How does canned Campbell's Soup sound?"

"Fair enough. And as a guest then, I will carry your bags." He said, reaching out towards me.

My gripped tightened on them before he tore the bags out of my hands. "Is there a fee?" I joked.

"Probably not." He said, as I released my hold on them. We both got out of the car, heading towards the front door. "Can't make any promises though."

"Hey!" I giggled. "No fair!"

"Well, I just don't play fair!" Suddenly, I felt a wave of nostalgia hit me.

_I giggled again. "Wrong!" Irritated, I felt him lift the entire sheet up to expose the pillows. "Hey!" I exclaimed. "You're not playing fair!"_

"_I'm a Decepticon. I do not play fair."_

I shook my head. That's not real Julie. Get your head out of there. I gritted my teeth in frustration. "Jules?" Sides said, giving me a worried look.

I forced myself to beam at him. "That's a load of hooey. There're rules you know!" I mentally cringed after saying that. Not only was that the most ridiculous thing a seventeen year old can say to a twenty-two year old, but it was also what I had replied to 'Barricade the robot' when _he_ said he didn't play fair.

He laughed. "We haven't established any rules yet, my dear."

I smiled, but said nothing as I concentrated on unlocking the door. When I swung it open, I swear my heart stopped for a second out of shock.

The house was a wreck, which was definitely not the condition I had left it in this morning. The carpet looked like some hairy black dog had been meticulously rolling in it so that every inch of the floor had at least _some _black form of dust or molecules on it. Jack's broken beer bottle pile near the wall seemed to have multiplied twenty-fold compared to this morning, and there was this weird gooey stuff sliding down the hand rail of the stairs. Now I wasn't totally caught up on cleaning and hygiene, not at all, but this…, this was horrid. The house had been turned into a wreck in a single afternoon, and by the looks of it, Jack and his friends, who he must've had over, had been the cause of it. Needless to say, I was a little embarrassed about it.

"Wow." Sides breathed. "I had thought you as a neat-freak type of person." he joked.

"I'm not…" I said, still shocked myself. "But this is definitely not how I left it this morning."

"Does it seem like someone broke in?" He asked, his eyes seemed to be scanning the sitting room.

"No… I think Jack had friends over."

"Your dad?"

"Uhh..." Yeah, only by flesh and blood. "Sure." I said. "Come on, let's go into the kitchen for now. I'll clean this up later." Sides followed me through the doors to the kitchen, and the sight of the condition _that_ was in made me gasp. There was err… spaghetti sauce? Ketchup? Red paint? Well whatever it was, it was all over the walls, cabinets, counter and ceiling. There were some streak marks on the floor, signalling that someone must've slipped on it. I hope it was Jack. If I was lucky, maybe he had split his head open… but that was only wishful thinking. Oh my God, how am I ever going to clean this up? It will take me _days_.

"_Now_ are you sure someone didn't break in?"

I sucked in some air to calm myself before replying. "I'm sure. Let me just put some stuff away so I can clean and make that soup for—"

Sides grabbed my busy arm, giving me a serious look. "It's okay." He said. "I'm actually not that hungry." He confessed. "How about I stay and help you clean?"

I felt _really_ embarrassed now. Not only did he have to put up with this wreck of a house, but he had to help _clean_ it too? That just didn't make any sense.

"It's okay Sides. I can clean it up later. I have nothing to do."

He looked around the house some more as I continued putting away groceries. At least the fridge was kept in good condition. I saw him grab some food cans out of the bag to put them away when I tore them out of his hands. "Sides." I whined. "Stop, I can do it myself." I realised that I sounded quite upset and frustrated, but I think he realised that I wasn't upset _at him_ in particular. Just at my predicament.

"You're stressed." He stated. Well no duh. I placed the cans in the pantry across the room where they were supposed to go. "I just want to help Jules." He said sadly.

I sighed. There goes his trademark smile. It was gone and that made me feel a guilty. "I'm sorry." I said, looking downcast. "If you really want to help, can you at least wipe up the counter for me?"

Sides gave me two thumbs up before reaching for some paper towels by the sink when we heard the front door slam open. I felt the dread fill me up from head to toe. Jack was home. Crap.

"Brat!" he called for me across the house. Oh God, oh God... why was he home so early? It's not even ten yet! I exchanged a nervous glance at Sides as he gave me a confused one. My eyes snapped up when Jack stumbled into the kitchen. He had a common whore latched onto his arm, and stood a little hunched, tipsy. "W-what? Who's _that_ _guy_?" He asked, straightening up a little.

"Jack, this is Sides-, uh... Sean." I said quietly, defeated. I had wanted everyone I knew to avoid a meeting with Jack, but now, I just wish I had never invited Sides in here in the first place. I would've saved him a lot of time, energy, and perhaps a bit of my dignity. I turned to Sides. "Sides, this is my… dad."

Sides seemed to straightened up a little after the introduction and gave Jack a disapproving glance. A _hard_ disapproving glance. "It's nice to meet you sir." He went up and exchanged handshakes with him.

Jack sneered. I can already see him performing a mock parody of Sides to his whore girlfriend. I found myself utterly disgusted at the thought. "Well, what are you still doing here _boy?_" I almost groaned. I felt like burying my face in my hands, never taking my head out of them from pure embarrassment. Normally when your friends meet your parents, you're embarrassed by them anyways because they talk about how cute you were when you were a little kid, and talk about your old embarrassing habits. This was different though. I'm embarrassed because Jack is making fun of _himself_. Oh God, please stop talking Jack.

Sides looked shocked at his words, and it was then that I decided to put an end to his misery. I began pulling on his arm. "I think you should leave now." I said quietly, cringing as his eyes widened, disbelieving my words. "I'm sorry. I can show you out…"

"He's a big boy, bra—Julia." Jack interrupted. "He can find his own way out."

Sides began to clench his hands into fists, his body shaking as his eyes narrowed onto Jack. Something told me that Sides could tear Jack apart into little pieces if he wanted to, despite their differences in physique. He was in the military after all, but I couldn't let him do that. He could get into serious trouble for doing that. "Sides, please." I whispered. "I'll talk to you later okay?" Though, I highly doubt that he would want to talk to me after this.

Sides did not say anything but instead gave me a hard look before exiting the house. The door slammed. Right then, I felt as if my heart had been shattered into a million bits and pieces, stamped on many times by a giant's foot, and then run over by an industrial truck, because of the glance he gave me. I didn't know why. It's not as if I _liked _him or anything. He was older than me! I heaved a sigh. Oh well… I didn't think I had a chance with such a great guy anyways. He'll find a better girl in no time. He's _able _to find a better girl in no time. He had options. I didn't. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get that look on his face out of my mind. He looked so… hurt… and disappointed.

"Pam," Jack finally announced. I didn't realise that there had been a silence after Sides left. "Meet me in my room. I'll be there in a second."

"But…"

"Go!" Jack snapped. He was still slurring a bit from his consuming of excessive alcohol, but 'Pam' went upstairs obediently as we waited to hear her slam the door shut, no doubt undressing herself to prepare to show off her 'sexy' fat and cellulite to Jack. I shuddered in disgust.

"You!" he barked, grabbing my arm, dragging me up the stairs for the second time of the day. I yelped at the strength of his grip once more. There's bruise number two.

"Ow!" I cried out, tears beginning to form in my eyes. I didn't want this to happen again. Not today at least. "Stop, _please_."

We got to the top of the stairs where he stopped and began to yell. I was surprised that the next door neighbours didn't hear and come to check out what was happening. "Who said you can bring anyone over to this house? This is _my_ house, and without _my _permission, you're not allowed to bring ANYONE in this hou—"

"Ah! Please, _dad_." I cried out in pain. "It hurts."

"What the hell? Who said you could interrupt me? We went over it this morning! I want respect from you!" He raised his hand far back for extra momentum and winded it down to slap me in the face. It was very painful.

Unfortunately for me, the pain from his hand was not the only thing I had to worry about. The force of his slap had caused me to be pushed off the second floor and winding down the staircase. _All the way down_.

In all the commotion (I was very distracted by the pain and my lack of awareness between up and down), I didn't hear the front door open again when I was lying at the bottom of the stairs. I had the largest headache, my cheek burned, my neck landed a little uncomfortably, and my left wrist was in pain

"I forgot my…" There was a pause in a familiar voice. Sides. "…keys." I vaguely heard him shuffle quickly towards me. "Julie!" he cried in obvious panic. "Julie, can you hear me?" There was a lot of urgency in his voice. "Are you okay? Primus, Julie…" I felt numb as he positioned my body in what seemed to be the correct way up… I think. I winced as the blood rushed to my head, making me feel dizzy. My eyes didn't seem like they wanted to open. Tucked under his chin… I think…, I felt him look upwards towards the second floor.

"S-she fell backwards…. On her own." Came Jack's shaky reply. "She said she was feeling tired. Something about tutoring."

Since my eyes didn't seem to want to work, I could only assume that Sides narrowed his eyes, his voice dripping with venom. "I'll clean her up." He said shortly, carrying me into the living room.

"Good idea." I heard Jack said quietly, before hearing his door slam.

Sides gently placed me on the loveseat, careful not to traumatize my body any further. The absence of his warmth made me whimper a bit. I felt so weak… and shameful. As soon as the sound came out of my mouth, I felt him return. He let me lean against him. "Jules." He said softly. "Don't exert yourself." I heard the opening snap of a box, and managed to open my eyes to discover that it was a first aid kit.

"Where'd you find d'at?" I managed to mumble dizzily. "I was looking for it."

"Shh…" he shushed me. "In the freezer." He snorted. "I saw it when you were putting away the groceries." He dabbed my forehead with some cold liquid that stung. I didn't even realise I had a wound there.

I grimaced at the level of volume his voice seemed to be in. The stinging in my forehead didn't help either, but I endured it anyways. "I don't remember opening the freezer…" I croaked. My throat felt dry.

"You did." He said quickly. "You hit your head pretty hard." He continued to softly treat to my cuts. My eyes lazily opened to see him concentrated on my forehead. He seemed to be in deep thought, but the look on his face made my heart flutter, and then with him in so close in proximity, I knew I could no longer deny it.

There was an attraction between us.

It was almost painfully obvious, but then I suddenly came to realise that I had been lying to myself this whole entire day. I don't know what _sort of_ attraction this was. All I knew that there was this force that seemed to pull us together (well, I hope it's mutual), and as much as I had tried to deny it today... well, it couldn't be denied. Sides made my heartbeat go faster, he made me squirm under his gaze, and made me nervous and very aware of what he of all people thought of me. He made me self-conscious, but when he complimented me, I'd feel heavily flattered, and suddenly, I no longer felt so focussed on my flaws, and concentrated on what really mattered: him. He cared for me. My heart fluttered further as I thought about his gentle hands, giving my wounds all the attention in the world. I refused to give out my much needed contented sigh. Being so close to him, his eyes concentrated on me, his body heat caressing my skin... it made me forget about everything. Jack, Math, the wreck of the house, the pain...

Okay, maybe not the pain... well, _this _pain anyways.

My face contorted as I felt another awful sting as he tended to the bottom of my scalp and I reached out my hand to cling on his knee. It was so painful. Me, being completely stupid, didn't realise that my left hand was injured and cried out at the pain in my wrist as I tried to move my fingers. Sides quickly secured the wrist in his hands as he examined it. "It's a minor sprain." He analyzed. "But you shouldn't exert it too much anyways. I can wrap it in some bandages to give it support, but that's about the best I can do." He took some more things out of the box. "Good thing you're right handed." He mused.

"I didn't know you're a doctor." I said, absentmindedly, my eyes still in their sleeping position.

"I'm not." He said quietly. "I only know some basic stuff." He paused for a bit. "Things you can get off the internet."

I smiled but said nothing. Not wanting there to be an awkward silence, I reached for the remote beside me and turned on the TV. Hopefully the buzz of it will put me at more ease.

The next thing I knew, Sides had stuck band-aids on my cuts, my sweater was off, and I had Sides' arm wrapped around my shoulder, my head resting under the crook of his neck. I didn't even consider that my embarrassing bruises were out to play, revealing themselves to him. The only thing I could think of was how warm and hard he was. It was comforting and his body was very supporting.

"S-sides?" I mumbled out.

"Yeah?" he replied softly, his voice comforting, putting me at ease.

"Thanks." I said tiredly, before falling straight to sleep.

* * *

Woo! I'm actually quite happy with this chapter. The beginning, I'll admit, was quite hard for me to take off of, which explains how long this took, but I think I'm very content with the ending. I had loads of other ideas for this chapter, like the trip to the grocery store had a lot of things that could've happened, but when you have an author as lazy as me, all you get is two paragraphs explaining what took place. Yay!

And then there was supposed to be this whole entirely different scene in the middle of it all, but I think I will use that in the next few chapters.

Also, I had gotten the idea from **liz1234** that I should make Barricade appear. Sadly, I couldn't fit it in in this chapter, but I'm sure he will make A SMALL appearance in Chapter 5. Sorry to everyone who was expecting him here.

WOWWZZAAASS! THANKS TO ALL THE FAVOURITE-RS AND ALERT-ERS! WOOO! I got great feedback this time around, and I am very happy with the support I received! So thank you ALL! I LOVE EVERYONE! REALLY I DO!

And a HUGE WONKA SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL MY REVIEWERS! All of you make me SUPER happy, and just to let you know, I really do read all of them, and I reply to everyone that enables me to! So the HUGE WONKA SPECIAL THANKS goes to: **liz1234, nightmare91, Angelixlight, sumigrl, ultimateanime12, KyuuDobe,** **totallycute5, 'me' **(haha)**, EvilPurpleCookiePenkeyMonguin, **and **zeusgirl13**!

THANKS EVERYONE! I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE FEEDBACK I GET!

I'm hoping to hear from all o' you (: and as always…

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

**P.S. **If you haven't already, check my profile for more information about my upcoming hiatus. Thanks!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 **

The next morning, I could feel myself being covered by my… strangely heavy blanket, tucked into my own bed. I was awake, but I decided to keep my eyes closed, and stall a bit before getting up. There was a slight ache to my head, but it was nothing that couldn't be endured. But inside, I could feel an odd sense of contentment, something that I don't find myself usually feeling. I mean… you know sometimes you wake up from a dream, and you can't remember it, but you KNOW it was a _really, really, really,_ good dream? Yeah. I was feeling that. Lazily, I opened my eyes to glance at the clock.

Eh. I still had five minutes.

I felt a little warmer than usual, and my skin felt a little sticky, but it's probably just cold sweat from a dream or something. Sighing, I sank myself deeper into the tall pile of blankets and… wait a minute.

I snapped my eyes open to find myself being buried under at least four familiar looking blankets, toppled on uh… is that 5 sweaters? What is this?

I squirmed out from under the pile of heat. How on earth did those get there? I'll have to figure it out later. I stumbled out of my bed and lost a bit of my balance on the way to my own bathroom.

There was nothing really in there. Just your basics: toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, toilet paper,… yeah. It was a rather empty and sad bathroom. Not bothering to close the door (it was connected to my room, and _only_ my room, mind you), I grumbled sleepily as I relieved myself, disappointed that I couldn't remember my pleasant dream. I was about to step into the shower, when I realised I forgot that my towel was in my room. Sorry, I forgot about that. Toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, toilet paper, _and_ _towel_.

I went back into my room and grabbed the towel that was on my desk, but when I turned around, I nearly had a heart attack. "Ah—What the!" I cried in surprise, jumping on my bed as a reflex. I don't know why I did that. It's not like by jumping on the bed I could defend myself from the second person in the room.

It was a wonder how I didn't notice him before. It was a _greater_ wonder how I didn't notice that he had pulled my chair over and shoved it under the doorknob to lock it. If you still haven't realised who it was, it's Sides.

He had situated himself beside my chair, his shoulder leaning against the wall and arms, pulling his knees towards his chest. In his position, I suppose he was maybe… guarding the door… I think… with the chair locking it. He even had the decency to shove his nose into the corner of my room to assure me if I woke up that he was not doing or looking at anything indecent. I thought it was considerate of him, and I couldn't help but crack a smile at how ridiculous he looked, which suddenly faded as I thought of myself peeing with an open door, with him in the other room. Good thing he was asleep.

It _was_ a little unnerving that he had most probably tucked me in, since there was a next to zero chance that Jack had done it. And he had saw me sleeping. That too. I've always believed that the ugliest… no, the second ugliest moment you can catch a person in is when they're sleeping. The first is when they're yawning.

I quietly tip toed and bent down next to him, bending over to look at his sleeping face. Hmm… maybe sleeping doesn't make you look ugly after all. That, or Sides is just extremely good looking, which was probably it. He looked extremely peaceful, almost like he wasn't breathing. I had felt the urge to touch his face, and began lifting my hand when his eyes immediately snapped open. I lost my balance on my toes. "Ah!" I said, falling on my butt.

"Jules," he said, helping me up. "You okay?"

Wow. That was embarrassing. "U-uh, yeah. Thanks." We stood up together. "You stayed the night?" I asked, shocked.

"Well _somebody_ had to make sure you get some sleep." He argued. "You were really tired… not to mentioned injured." He grinned.

"Yes, and you also felt the need to lock the door too." I smiled, gesturing to the chair under the doorknob.

"Yeah…" He laughed nervously. "You should invest in a lock. You know… just in case." He said cryptically, but I didn't want to indulge into the topic any further. Instead I laughed at his silliness.

"And the blankets..."

"Yeah, I found them in the closet outside. I hope you don't mind... and I hope you were warm enough!" He said the words so sincerely, I didn't want to make fun of him... and he looked tired.

"Oh... uh, yeah it's fine. Well, I'm going to take a quick shower and get ready now. You can leave if you want…" I trailed off. "Or you can sleep for a few more minutes on my bed..." Oops… I shouldn't have said that. That sounded weird. Heat rose up my cheeks.

He shrugged, ignoring the pink on my cheeks. "How about since I'm here, I'll just give you a ride to school." He said, hopping onto my bed and lying down. He closed his eyes.

"Oh… Actually, that would be really convenient for me. Thanks." I smiled.

"Mhhm…" He mumbled, already drifting off.

My towel in hand, and a strange goofy grin on my face, I went into the bathroom, this time, I closed the door. I took a quick hot shower, to get yesterday's grime off of me. It felt good, though the few cuts I had stung a little, it wasn't too bad. When I looked into the mirror however, I blushed a bit. Sides had seemed to think it funny to put 'Digimon' pictured band-aids on my cuts. And to think, I had these on the whole time. I quickly ripped them off to avoid too much pain and threw them into the trash. He'll pay for that… later. I brushed my teeth, washed my face, changed into some fresh clothes, and was about to head back into my room, when my nearly forgotten hairbrush caught my eye. Hmm…. Submissive to its call, I slowly grabbed it and ran it through my hair. I snorted inwardly. School's not a big enough occasion to use this, why is it any different today? But deep down inside, I knew the answer.

Stepping out of the bathroom, I found another sleeping Sides, but this time, on my bed… just how I left him. Okay, I'll admit, it was a _little_ creepy of me to stand next to him, examining his features... Just a little, but I couldn't help it. I mean, half of me _was_ examining, but the other half was thinking about how I should wake him up. Wouldn't it be awkward (or rude) if I woke him up just because I needed a ride?

Tentatively, I lowered my hand to tap him on the shoulder when all hell ensued.

Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but more or less, he _attacked_ me.

Okay, that's also an exaggeration, but it works. Out of no where his arm charged at me to loop around my neck, making me fall on him. I caught a glimpse of his feral grin. Jesus, he was giving me a noogie.

"Hey! Ow, ow, ow," I cried while giggling. "Stop it!" I laughed. Well, now at least I know that there was no point in me running that brush through my hair.

Sides cracked another smile as he stopped, but unconsciously kept his arm wrapped around my neck. "I love the look on your face!"

"And what look would that be?" Turning to face him, I smiled. He was very warm. Sides did a mock horrified look to demonstrate my reaction and laughed. The look might've looked okay on his own features, but on me, I was surprised _he_ wasn't terrified of it. "That's not funny!" I said, hitting him. Sides then tightened his arm, closing the little space in between us and stared at me seriously, the remaining little tug, still on his lips. I was stupefied. He looked like he was about to do something… something I don't think I would like. Okay… This is weird. Is there something on my face? His stare had brought on a serious atmosphere.

As soon as it had appeared, Sides surprised me by re-mocking my expression. I laughed inwardly, but pretended to be angry on the outside. "I said _stop it_." I put on a grumpy face and turned my body towards the opposite direction.

"Aw, come on Jules." He laughed, but there was a slight apologetic tone to it.

"You're such a jerk!" I said successfully, not leaving any playful notes in it, waiting for the right moment.

"Jules…" He sighed. "Hey, come on… look at me. I'm a jerk alright? I'm sorry, I—"

"BOO!" I cried out in his face! I put my open palms on both sides of my head and wiggled my fingers as if pretending to be a monster… except as I recall, only five year olds did this but even then, I had my lips opened into the largest smile.

Much to my disappointment, and great embarrassment however, Sides was not surprised... at all. Amused, sure, but he did not even do a slight jump! Who is this guy? At first, he had smothered his chuckle, but his laugh soon boomed next to my ear. "You're not fun." I grumbled, facing my head up, away from his face. "I don't understand why you weren't surprised!"

He did not stop laughing. "I've been told that I'm not easily surprised, and if it's any constellation, your cuts make you look a little scarier…" I gave him a playful glare. He suddenly put on his very infectious smiley face on. "You're the cutest human I've ever met."

"Not to mention the smartest, bestest, awesomest human you've ever met!" I boasted, my arms crossed..

"Yeah, that too." I didn't look at him, but he said it with a certain level of… fondness… in his voice. We both didn't speak after that. I was distracted by my own mindless thoughts as I stared at a certain spot of the ceiling in my room, thinking. I was thinking about nothing really… well truthfully, I had missed dinner last night, so I was really thinking about what I should have for breakfast, and it's not like I had that yesterday either.

But the next thing I knew, I was beginning to doze off again, forgetting about my hunger. My head comfortably lolled towards his shoulder. I dually noted that my head was still resting on his arm which was still wrapping around me to the other side. He smelled faintly of the fresh smell of gasoline when a car is started up for the first time and mint chocolate (my favourite flavour of ice cream), which was a little odd, and more appealing than it actually sounds. I don't want to sound like an immature school girl, but his scent made him seem more 'manly'.

I found myself inwardly wondering why the guys at school are not even remotely similar to Sides. They didn't _have _to be exactly like him. In fact, I would be happy (and surprised) if they had one or two traits, but nope, all guys in high school are jerks… serious jerks. But I suppose that all comes with growing up. High school boys are after all, only just beginning to go through puberty. I mean in school- Oh crap… school.

My eyes snapped wide opened and I stirred. Why was it so war—Oh… a blanket… How and when did that get over us? I felt Sides shift next to me at my movement. He seemed to be going in and out of sleep also. "Sides?" I whispered, checking to see if he was conscious.

"Mhhmm?" He mumbled, his eyes unopening.

"I have to get to school now, I—" He suddenly blinked awake. I wish I could do that… being alert in two seconds.

"Let's go." He said, sitting up on my bed. I could tell he was a little disappointed. I sighed. Me too.

I slowly let my feet touch the ground, trying to regain my balance from the 15 minute nap. I had used my eating time to doze off a little, but I do believe it was worth it. My legs were always a little stumbly after sleeping, and It always took a few seconds to get the blood to rush back down, but sometimes when you're in a hurry, you just have to make do with it.

Stumbling a little, I grabbed a jacket and headed down the stairs. Sides seemed to think (and laugh) that my problem was more serious than I thought it was, but out of the one day I had known him, I've concluded that he is quite the worry wart.

Thinking on it now, I _have_ only known Sides for about a day… but it felt like decades, and that's saying something since I've only been alive for barely two decades… He was familiar, but I know I haven't met anyone like him in this lifetime. It was odd.

At the end of the staircase, I could feel the noise in the kitchen in the other room darken my spirits, which Sides had seem to take upon himself to brighten earlier. Jack was in this morning… _again. _And it's not like the state of the house brightened me up any either. Sides seemed to feel my unease and tried to lighten the mood. "That's an interesting mirror." He commented on a rather large mirror hanging on the wall like a large landscape picture. It was probably the most expensive piece of furniture, if you can call it that, in our house.

"Oh. Thanks. It came from my mom's side of the family I think." I replied tonelessly.

Sides put a hand on my shoulder and stopped his 'distract Julie' strategy. "You left your bag in the kitchen. I'll get it for you." He said softly, walking away. I mentally thanked Sides for doing it for me. After yesterday, I didn't want to face Jack so soon. Even though Sides had not seen what had happened, and had been fed a lie, I had a feeling he was smart enough to deduce what had happened. He didn't say anything about it though, which I am also thankful for. I began to hear chatter in the other room and listened in at the corner.

"You stayed the night." Jack stated, monotonously. It was almost a disapproving tone, but what did he care? He does it with women all the time and he doesn't see me complaining.

"Yes." Sides replied simply. I didn't hear any movements and assumed they were just staring each other down. Sides… what are you doing? Just get my bag!

"So," Jack changed into a casual tone of voice. "Where's Julia?" He asked indifferently.

Now I heard Sides shuffling and mentally cheered. He was getting my bag. "I told her to help me start up the car."

"Oh really?" He asked. I assumed Sides nodded. "So if I walk out right now, I will see your car rumbling, which I should've been able to hear from here anyways?"

"Yes." Sides said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. What was he doing? Jack was the type of person who would take initiative just to prove someone wrong, and make himself seem like the bigger person. This was getting out of hand. "I suppose you didn't hear it. Would you like to check now—"

Shuffling my feet beforehand, I walked into the kitchen. "Sides, what's taking you so long?" I interrupted.

"He was just talking to me Julia. Didn't I teach you to _respect_ others and have patience?" Jack sneered, with the underlying message in it. Here we go. He was going to begin his 'good parent' act.

"Sorry." I said quietly. I could feel Sides' eyes burning through me.

"Well anyways Julia, I was going to get Sean here to give you a message for me, but since you're here, I'll tell you myself now. I'll allow you to skip work today." He said as if he was being lenient. I gave him a confused look. "But," he continued sharply. "You should know that I do not tolerate filthiness in this house, and I'm only allowing you to skip work so you can spend the day cleaning." He said a little smugly. "I want you to be finished by the time I get home. I'll be coming home late tonight anyways." He waved off.

"I have tutor."

"Tutor does not take more than an hour Julia." He said sternly. "You'll have more than enough time to clean today."

I nodded in defeat. "Okay."

"Good." His pompous grin did not go missed by me. "Aren't you late for school? It's a long walk..."

"I'll be driving her." Sides cut in coldly.

"Very well then." He said. "What are you still doing here then?"

* * *

Neither of us spoke as we drove. In the midst of the silence, it was obvious that we were both absorbed in our own thoughts. But when we stopped at McDonalds drive thru, I have to say, I was quite surprised. "What are we doing here?" I asked him in confusion.

"You're hungry aren't you?" He rolled his eyes slightly.

I reflected to myself for a few seconds. Was I still hungry? I certainly was this morning, but now, I wasn't so sure, plus, I didn't have any money. "It's okay, I'm not feeling too hungry anymore."

"Jules…" He whined. "You have to eat _something_. You didn't even eat dinner yesterday. It's my treat." He offered.

I was hesitant. I was beginning to feel like I owe Sides a little too much. He is doing so much for me, and I was doing nothing but relying on him. I shouldn't. It's rude and I should learn to be more independent. "It's okay Sides." I gave him an encouraging smile. "I'm not hungry."

"You didn't even pack a lunch." He argued. It was true. I didn't have time to do anything for today's lunch, and again, it's not like I have any money with me. "Please?" He begged.

I didn't even know why he cared so much. "Fine." I sighed at him.

Sides gave me a really bright smile which at least made me feel a little better. "Great! What will you have? There's a line up behind us now."

I shrugged indifferently. "Doesn't matter. I eat anything." Oh boy, did I wish I did not say that. He ordered me two large meals. Enough said.

* * *

For the next few weeks, Sides and I have been nearly inseparable. I'd even go as far as saying we were joined at the hip, and that my friends, is _not_ an exaggeration. On the second day after I had met him, Sides had once again 'supervised', or what I like to call tutor, Sam, who surprisingly seemed to rarely know what he is talking about, and me at Math. He actually really helped the both of us in that class. My marks shot straight up, and now I was in the mid-B range, which I am very proud of. But I couldn't give Sides all the credit. I believe Ms Higginbottom was marking extra lenient with me. She had once complimented me after class and asked me to aim for an A. Sides also seemed to encourage it, and is trying his best to teach me using 'his simplest language' he says. I scoff at him every time he suggests it.

And on that second day, he also forced entry into the house and began cleaning! Talk about superman. He worked so fast, I had thought that his speed was impossible. He'd assign himself with vacuuming, while I assign myself washing dishes, but right before I even filled the sink with bubbles, he had finished the whole house! He even did a very good job! Yes, _really_.

At my gawking expression, he had formed a soap bubble beard on me with the detergent and blew on my face to make It go everywhere. It was okay though. In return, I turned him into a twenty-two year old Harry Potter… a soap bubble version.

Aside from offering to drive me to school, he also insists on driving me to work too. He claims the streets are dangerous, but how dangerous can they be when I`ve been taking public transit nearly my whole life? As far as I know, nothing has ever happened to me. But if he insists…

I know. Despite of what I had said on Day Two, I am heavily relying on him all the time now. I always feel bad, but sometimes, I feel _really_ bad. I once asked him more about his military work, and how he rarely ever goes to work anymore because he's always around me. Every time I ask about it though, he would simply crack a joke and say it was classified. Well, if it's classified, I can't meddle into it. Now _that_'s really rude.

As of concerning Jack, I rarely see him anymore. I honestly don't know if it's because Sides is always around me, or if he just found a new hobby, or if it's just a 'bored of Julie' phase. Whatever the reason was, the only contact I have with him is probably listening to him come home late at night.

Everything was as good as I could ever hope for. Sure I don't have a _perfect_ life, but I did not think I would ever be able to obtain a best friend like Sides, or even talk cars with Mikaela. By the way, we're friends now, can you believe that? Okay, we're not best friends, we've barely hit the 'friends' stage, but I really don't know whether or not I want anything to come out of it. In my perspective, she seems to be reaching out to me so it's only natural for me to respond.

But when I came out of the house today when Sides picked me up this morning, I _knew_ something was wrong. For one thing, (I know this is weird, and you're going to think I'm absolutely crazy but) the Stingray looked a little dirtier, and less shiny than I had remembered it the first time I saw it. The 'glory', if you will, was gone. Another thing was that for the time I first got into the car, Sides' bright smile was not there, but was instead replaced by a grimace. He seemed to be distracted.

"Sides?" I speculatively asked. "Is something wrong?"

"No." He said shortly. He did not elaborate.

"Oh." I said, a little hurt. We usually tell each other everything and believe it or not, this is the first time he had been this obscure with me. "Okay."

"Damnit Jules, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel left out, it's just…" He sighed and paused as he pulled up at the school. "Listen," he began again. "Something's come up at the base, and I won't be able to drive you to work today."

Was that why he was so tense? Did he think I'd be upset with him just because his job called for him? "Sides, if that's what it's all about, I'm not mad." I laughed a little. "It's no big deal, I'll take the bus to work and—"

"Don't take public transit today." He cut off. "It's not safe."

"Sides," I said a little more sternly. "I've taken public transit many times. Nothing has ever happened to me."

"That doesn't mean nothing _will_ happen Jules. You never know." He said with just as much firmness as me. "Promise me that you'll stay inside school grounds today and then go straight home, and stay home. _Especially_ today."

I gave him a shocked look. What brought all this about? And what was so special about today? "Sides, I have to go to work. You know that."

"You don't have to. You don't have to do anything if you don't want to."

"I want to."

"You don't."

"How can you say that like you know me?" I said, raising my voice a little.

Sides drew back his argument and paused, thinking. "You're right. I don't know you and I'm sorry." He stared hard at me. "But I _want _to know you, and you need to be around for me to do that. I'm just concerned for you."

"That's really sweet Sides, I want to know you too, but I've done this a million times before. I'll be okay if I do it one more time."

He didn't look convinced, and it didn't seem like he's letting me leave his car before we come down with some sort of conclusion. I could see that he had a million more things to counter me, but I could also see that he was on a tight schedule. Poor Sides. "So…?" I asked. "I still need to go."

He heaved a large sigh, something I've never seen him do and frowned at the steering wheel. "Fine." He said stubbornly. "If I'm not here by 3:15 take public transit, but promise me this," he took one of my hands and squeezed it. "be careful." He said. "And try to at least take Sam and Mikaela with you. Ask them. Can we compromise on that?"

Jeez, he's making us sound like a couple. "Yeah. I can do that." I smiled at him and opened the door. "Thanks Sides." … Not like I needed his permission or anything, but I'm glad he acknowledges that I really have to go to work. He didn't say anything but looked straight through the windshield. Oh boy, he was not happy. Then I tried to say something that would make his trademark smile reappear. "I… I hope your thing at the military goes well." I uttered out. Real smart Julie. Is that really the best you could do?

"Me too." Sides said, finally looking at me. As suspected, he did not smile. "Be safe." He said, and he drove away.

* * *

Okay, here's the thing: Please don't kill me.

I KNOW I said that Barricade will be in this chapter, but I couldn't help it. I've already reached my word count minimum, and the next part (which has Barricade in it, one hundred percent sure), will definitely take up quite some space… much too much for this chapter.

In addition, I do not believe you will be reading the next chapter until I return, which really sucks. Let's lay this out realistically: I'm leaving my house in 5 hours… and I still have to edit. Yay… ):

I sincerely apologize… especially since this chapter was supposed to be posted twenty four hours ago, but I always miss my deadlines! But in a way, those deadlines push me a little more to complete the next chapter, so that's a pro for me.

As for the content in this chapter, I suppose the rating of it really depends on what you're looking for. This is really all just fluff with no real plot in it (okay maybe a little), but if you're interested, please note the talk about the intricate mirror in Julie's house. That will be something to remember for further into the story.

Ugh, I realise that because this was a crappier chapter, the ratings won't be as good… **but please be patient with me.** In the next chapter, things will get going… whenever it is up.

Yes… so Chapter 4 rating… is my expectation… multiplied **ten-fold**!

WOW! I got an enormous amount of feedback, and as I had suspected, many liked Chapter 4 for the same reason as me! So for all those favourit-ers and alert-ers…. THANK YOU SO MUCH! I love you and your support is sincerely appreciated!

NOW FOR THE REVIEWERS, I THANK YOU MORE! This is the most reviews I've gotten per chapter in a long, long while. Long, long, long, long, long while. It's been a while. Haha. So a ENORMOUS thanks to: **totallycute5, EvilPurpleCookiePenkeyMonguin, KyuuDobe, Angelixlight, ultimateanime12, nightmare91, IWillEatYourFamily, precious92, sumigrl, lunahermionemalfoyy, Gelly619, JaazzylovesTransformers, **and** Mugiwara-Kaizokudan! **I love you all! You know I review to everyone of you who enabled PM's! The support is really motivating! So once again,

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

**P.S. **If you haven't already, please check my profile page for more information on my upcoming hiatus. The progress of upcoming chapters are also regularly updated and can also be found on my profile!

I hope to hear from you! (Good or bad things)


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The sky was quickly falling dark as I closed up the shop today. Paul normally did it since he was the adult, but today, he had a 'date' with a special someone. It was good. Paul deserved someone to be happy with. Because of that, and because he assumed Sides would be driving me home today, he was unable to give me a ride like he normally did. But it was okay. I could take the bus.

Now technically, I wasn't going back on the promise I made with Sides. I mean, today, I _did_ ask Sam and Mikaela to come to town with me by bus since Sam's Camaro was in the repair shop, but they both politely declined and said they were going on a 'normal' date for once, whatever that means. And I _am_ heading straight home after work. No detours. And I plan to stay there (of course, what else could I be doing this late…). And guess what? I am being safe… Well… I'm about to walk through an underpass right now, which might sound just a tad bit sketchy, but it was the quickest way to the bus stop. In addition, it is the route I am most familiar with, so why wouldn't I be safe? I'd be in more danger if I was in an unfamiliar place right?

And besides, Sides is just overreacting. What could possibly be out here that's so dangerous, that I haven't encountered before? He was being a little ridiculous, but nonetheless, I'm keeping my promise… more or less.

Turning onto the dark underpass, I honestly didn't even notice what was happening until I heard the firing of a gun and an explosion… sorry, I meant _several_ gunshots and explosions.

It really didn't occur to me that the normal reaction of an average human would be to make a bee-line in the opposite direction. Of course, being the apparent idiot that I am, I ran towards the corner of the underpass to see what was happening… and I couldn't be more shocked in my life… especially now since I'm grown up and knew what a death-sentence meant.

The underpass, now ceiling-less, was being torn apart by two… well… _robots_. These weren't just any robot that you'd typically see at some underground robot battle either. This was real. They were really impressively _gigantic,_ and no I am not mental… though I should really get myself to a doctor just to be sure.

Surprisingly, it was easy to distinguish between the two robots. They had a huge size difference since the robot with familiar looking blue eyes seemed burlier, and was loaded with cannons, while the other robot had red eyes and claws. From what I could tell, I saw more wheels then weapons on him, and his arm said… 'Police' on it… hold on…

"Barricade?" I whispered as realization hit me. It couldn't be. I blinked and rubbed my eyes to see if it was some sort of hallucination…

It wasn't, and I couldn't decide if that was a good thing. Barricade was supposed to be in Kentucky, doing whatever he was supposed to be doing. It couldn't possibly be him… but it was.

"Is that all you got punk?" the burlier robot growled as the guns attached to his armed shifted gears for ammo.

Barricade gave a snarl at the blue-eyed robot and took him down with a tackle that shook the ground. "No, it's not, autobot scum."

I suppose I was lucky enough to not be noticed by the two robots… I mean, this would probably be the best time for me to run… I could practically see Sides yelling at me for being stupid and not saving my own butt, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Half of it was because my legs seemed to be petrified, my sneakers gluing me to the floor. The other half was because… well, even after all these years of not hearing from him, I wanted Barricade to be alright. I wanted him to win this battle. I wanted to help him… but what can a weak, lowly human like myself do? It wasn't like I had my own cannon attached to my arm either.

Barricade began to hit the living daylights out of the blue-eyed robot, and he seemed to be winning the battle. I mentally cheered for him. But it was then, that a blast of light occurred between them and Barricade was shot across the broken underpass. I heard him groan but quickly got back on his feet.

"Take the fire of my guns!" the other robot exclaimed almost maniacally, and began shooting his firearms repeatedly, aiming for Barricade. I felt my insides lurch, my brains screaming for him to dodge, my lips glued together in anticipation.

It seemed as if Barricade had heard my thoughts as he dodged the first couple of shots, but was then hit by one cannon, and bombarded with the others that followed. He fell. Tragically, the other robot continued shooting at Barricade until he ran out of ammo. Sure that Barricade would not stand, he paused to shift gears, while I prayed to the gods for Barricade move, but he didn't.

Finished adjusting his weaponry, the blue-eyed robot aimed his gun at Barricade. "Any last words Decepti-scum?" No words left Barricade but a slight groan. The gun began to glow blue through the silence.

This was happening way too fast. This couldn't be the end for him! He was Barricade the robot! He was strong, powerful, and… he just couldn't lose… Not now.

His gun reaching its optimum energy level s, the other robot sneered at the silence. "I guess not then."

Right then, I didn't know what overcame me. I even surprised myself! Maybe it was the frantic beating of my pulse, or the dizziness that seemed to hang over my mind like a large blanket, but all I knew was that I couldn't simply stand and watch this happening in front of me. Yes, I'm an idiot, so sue me and my self-acting body.

My sneakers, no longer glued to the floor, began moving, and I made a mad dash to get between Barricade and the glowing cannon that was about to shoot. I vaguely remembered the word, 'STOP' leaving my mouth, and the spreading of my arms to create more of a barrier between the cannon and Barricade, but to be honest, I couldn't really remember. I did remember however the frightening sensation of myself staring in the face of the cannon. I had snapped my eyes shut after as if it would lessen the pain I was about to experience. I suppose I should've been thinking '_Crap! What am I going to do now?_' but surprisingly, the thought didn't cross my mind at all. I was thinking more along the lines of '_I hope my body is big enough to take the blow, but doubtful'_… and I was completely serious.

I heard the shot being released from the cannon. There was an explosion, but three seconds had passed (I counted), and I didn't feel a thing. The next thing I heard was a fuzzy, albeit demeaning, loud voice from behind me. "J-Julie?" Daring a peek, I opened my eyes slowly to find my view obstructed by closed fingers… sorry, _claws_.

But based on what I could tell, there was no damage that had been inflicted on the claw. Instead, I looked at the ceiling behind me and saw that the other robot had deliberately aimed at the already crumbling ceiling of the underpass at the last minute. I turned to look at the glowing red eyes that I found myself relieved to see opened. "Hi Barricade." I squeaked a little awed, but mostly relieved.

"Damn Decepti-scum." A gruff voice said from behind me. "I shouldn't be surprised that you'd be hiding behind a _human_." The other robot spat out, though despite his words, there was still a look of slight shock on his face. He began to approach. I felt the dread slowly begin to fill me as his feet made the ground shake with every step.

Before he could make it all the way however, a bright light flashed at impact on his back, and the blue-eyed robot rolled to the side and recuperated by shooting at another robot who turned the corner. "Slag it! Get back here you fraggin' decepticon!" he yelled, chasing after it. I inwardly wondered if the blue-eyed robot was too bright, but dismissed the thought as Barricade moved to stand.

He hid a groan as he held onto normal ground above the underpass. "Barricade, are you alright? Can you stand?" I moved to touch him but he withdrew his foot quickly, snapping it away from me irritably.

"Don't touch me!" he barked. I retracted my hand, both confused, and crestfallen. "I'm _fine_." He spat a little rudely.

Huffing, I put both my hands on my hips. "Excuse me?"

"I didn't need your human help." He said bitterly. "I was _fine_." Oh Barricade, you're totally in denial, but I'll bite.

"I know." I said quietly. "I—" I was cut off by a ground shaking explosion that made me fall off my feet. Barricade caught me in his claws before I hit the floor and actively stepped out of the underpass, which greatly surprised me. Perhaps he didn't need me after all.

"You shouldn't be here." He said as he ran behind a few buildings and entered a small park within the city. He stopped momentarily, looking around to see if we had company.

"Why not?" I said simply, holding on to one of his claws. It wouldn't be _his fault_ if I fell.

Ignoring my question, he continued to hastily walk into the trees. I hoped he knew where he was going because I certainly didn't. "I thought I had left you in…" he seemed to search his mind for the place. "Kentucky."

"I moved." I said again simply. "I've been here for quite a while now actually. Why are _you_ here?"

Yet again, ignoring me, Barricade placed me on a high tree branch near the central area of the park. I could see the playground beyond the next few trees. "Stay here." He whispered quietly as another explosion sounded from where we had just come from.

"But Barricade—" I said, clinging the tree for dear life… I had already looked down.

"Do as I say." He almost growled, which immediately shut me up. I didn't realise when I was nine that he really _was_ sort of scary… Or that he was able to look scary at all. I was obviously wrong.

Neither of us said anything for a while as he just stood there, staring at me. I could feel my fingers becoming raw both from the cold night air and my death grip on the wood. Being caught up with my fingers, I didn't even register that I had hot liquid streaming down my face.

I heard Barricade give a long sigh. "You're leaking…" he paused. "_again_."

I couldn't help but let the side of my lips tug upwards, but I did not dare wipe my face. "You forgot they're called tears… _again_."

On that note, I felt Barricade's single claw attempt to wipe a tear away, which surprisingly did the job. "And why are you _leaking_?" he said with slight agitation. "Leaking suggests an increase in your prolactin levels which indicates stress or sadness." He paused again. "Are you sad?"

Sniffling, I shook my head. "No…" I trailed off as he gave me a puzzled look. "I'm afraid of heights." I admitted, with embarrassment.

Barricade scoffed loudly and tore me away from my death grip, walking into the empty children's park. "You're afraid of being high up from the ground, yet you show no fear when facing an alien robot… a _decepticon_ to be exact."

I couldn't help but chuckle a little as he let me down. "You know me so well."

Ushering me under the jungle gym, Barricade's head abruptly snapped towards the left, making my blood run cold. The world seemed to freeze for the next two seconds before Barricade's gaze returned to me. He made me wonder if there was something menacing out there in the park… you know, aside from the … uh, decepticon in front of me. Facing me, he gruffly said, "Stay here until I come back for you."

I felt another wave of dread hit me. "What? Why?" I whispered.

"Just do it."

"Will you be back?" I said uncertainly. "You're not going to leave me again are you?"

Barricade came up close to me and traced his claw along a fresh cut I had received from Jack all those weeks ago before Sides had come into my life. He breathed onto my face, staring into my widened eyes. "Never again."

* * *

Hello. So it's been…. Three and a half months since I've last updated and honestly… there is no excuse. Admittedly, I _have_ been a lot busier than I had expected with everything's that happening, but really, right now is the least best time I should be writing. You see, I have a mid-term the day after tomorrow and I have studied zip the past week.

What got me back into writing you may ask? Well, it's this new idea I've had in my head for quite some time. It's called 'They Must Go', which you've probably seen since I'd finally gotten it posted just yesterday, but in my author's note, I had reminisced about this project. And then I also received a review from **ultimateanime12** that they were glad I had announced I am still continuing this fiction and looked forward to reading it (; I honestly don't know what about _that review_ made me think I should start writing Chapter 6 again, but whatever it was, it gave me a lot of motivation for some reason. So a shout out to… her? x)

As of now, I'm really hoping for an update every week, but as I had mentioned in that very same Author's Note, I really have to _feel like it_ to write... Even then, the quality is at a minimum. Even the first chapter of 'They Must Go' took me almost a month to write out (no joke), and we all know how short _that was._

Anyways, I apologize to ALL my reviewers for my lack of reply… I really didn't get around to reply to everyone, and I am greatly sorry for that. But, I would like you all to know that I really appreciate and value every piece of feedback I receive and I'm very thankful for having such great readers… though I will never understand how I ever deserved you guys.

A big thanks to said reviewers: **KyuuDobe, totallycute5, xRatchetXNightSaberx, nightmare91, SeasonSinger, Angelixlight, sumigrl, lunahermionemalfoyy, ultimateanime12, Side-swipe, anon, Zayren Heart, Ryle Culler, dreamin'BIG, Echo, **and **Robin Grimm-Goodfellow**.

I couldn't have done this chapter without all your support and I hope to hear some more opinions on this chapter (:

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

smellysoap


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Hiding under what I supposed was 'safe', I tried my best to patiently wait for Barricade's return to me. Patience was actually a personal attribute in which I find myself to proudly possess, but this time around, it was not with me.

I tried. I honestly did, but sitting around idly in the confines of a children's jungle gym in an empty park hardly seemed productive at all. With the fog of my breath being the most interesting thing in front of my face to concentrate on, I tried to let time pass by thinking of questions I had wanted to ask Barricade later, but the list was so long, I had lost track of the questions by question number thirty.

I didn't know how long I have been sitting there in the eerie silence, wet and cold, and when I felt the little aching pain in my stiff neck, I had had enough. Sighing with the slightest annoyance, I crawled out of my little hiding place with surprising ease. My mind momentarily wandered to how much trouble Sides' would've had getting out of there due to his height. I chuckled at the thought.

I did a full body stretch when I had managed to escape, which might not have been the best idea if there was any danger nearby, but my surroundings were so quiet, the battle of alien robots must have been over by now. Technically I had no proof that it was over, but the pathway to the city seemed completely quiet and honestly, that was good enough for me. My back was aching, my neck was sore, and Barricade or not, I really just wanted to be in my bed.

When I got to the streets, all the street lamps were on, but it was completely empty of any organic or inorganic life, save for a napping alley cat lazing on a fence. I gingerly wondered if there would be any small robots hiding in the dark alleyways but dismissed the thought as there was a bus stop on this very street. In fact, I see one of them coming around the corner now. I did a little cheer inside on how I had good timing.

Relieved that I didn't have to wait too long, I was slightly surprised at seeing a familiar looking gemballa mirage zoom pass the community bus, then pass my bus stop to the end of the street. I was even more surprised when the car expertly made a series of complicated turns and pulled over beside me. The window rolled down to reveal Sunny.

Though still in shock, my first observation was that although I had not seen him since the first time I had met him nearly two weeks ago, Sunny looked exactly the same. He was wearing the same t-shirt, the same designer watch, perhaps the same jeans but I couldn't be sure, and he donned his own signature lush blonde hair. His eyes, like Sides', pierced right at me.

"What in Primus' name are you doing out here all alone? Today of all days?" Sunny spat disappointedly at me. Caught off guard by his forwardness, my mouth open into an 'o' shape in surprise but no words came out to defend myself. Sunny's head snapped to his right staring down into one of the dark alleyways before snapping back towards me. "Whatever, quick, get in."

A little more than confused, I sputtered, "What? Why?"

Though there were no explosions, I felt the concrete sidewalk beneath my sneakers tremble from an unknown impact. My eyes narrowed to the dark alleyway Sunny had just stared at. "I'll explain later get in."

Another tremble of the earth and a car alarm siren had me spin around towards the park I had just come out of warily, but I could see nothing. Obviously, the robot fight was not over yet. I distantly heard my bus honk impatiently at Sunny who was illegally occupying its bus stop, but did not think of it anymore. What if Barricade was once again badly injured? What if he needed my help? Though, I don't know how much a mere human like me can help, but I had improvised once, I can do it again.

Before I could start running towards the park however, I felt a warm hand grab my elbow and roughly toss me into the mirage. I couldn't help but glare at Sunny. I didn't much appreciate his rudeness or being manhandled by him. "Hey!" I protested. I barely noticed he had already started speeding down various streets.

"Sides will have my processers fried up if I don't pick you up." He said in an attempt to shut me up.

"I need to be somewhere! Stop the car!"

Sunny scoffed. "You're not going _anywhere_." He replied firmly.

"_Sunn-"_

"_Don't_ call me 'Sunny'" He snapped automatically. I had a feeling I wasn't the first one receiving this type royal treatment from him.

"Then what am I supposed to call you? You were introduced to me as that." I impatiently shook my head out of frustration.

Sunny, … excuse me, _Sides' twin_, seemed to ponder for a while. "My real name is… Spike."

"_Spike_?" I said with a little disbelief. "They gave you 'Sunny' when _Spike_ is easier to say?"

"That's how the military works. I don't control it, now drop it."

"Well, _Spike_," I began pointedly. "I really need to get out and do something. Can you please stop the car?"

"And what may I ask do you plan on doing?" He said, a little more annoyed than I would've liked.

"That's my business." I told him. "You obviously don't want me being in here so just drop me off anywhere. Over here is not a bad spot."

Spike took a deep breath. "No."

"And why not?"

"Sides' told me to take you home."

"I could've taken that bus you so kindly delayed."

"Didn't Sides talk about that with you already?"

"Not in great depth." I said, beginning to get irritated. "He didn't say what exactly was _wrong_ with taking the bus."

"You should just listen to him."

"He doesn't know what's best for me!" I said stubbornly. "It's not like he's my father, or brother, or anything."

"I know that." Spike seemed hesitant before speaking again. "He's your friend."

Once again caught off guard, I did not reply to him, but absently stared out the window. It was true. We didn't speak for a while after that.

Inside the car with only the dim glow of the radio buttons and speed meters, I noticed that I could not feel the trembles in the city even if I wanted to. I silently cursed how great Spike's car was as he sped through the city, and hoped that Barricade was alright.

"We're almost on the highway now." Spike said, stating the obvious, as if he was forced to.

I didn't answer, but instead kept my gaze fixed outside the window. Before I could even comprehend what was happening, Spike made a sudden sharp turn away from the highway, back towards the city, in a speed that frightened me to no ends. I pulled at the seatbelt and clumsily attempted to stick it into the clasp.

"What are you doing?" I shouted at him with alarm. When he did not answer me, I asked him again. "Spike?" I was barely able to buckle the seatbelt by myself until I felt the powerful magnet feature of the seatbelt and buckle connect together. I absently wondered when manufacturers had implicated such technology into new cars. "Spike!" I nearly screamed in alarm as he drove faster and turned sharper.

He took a few seconds to reply. "Scenic route." He replied shortly.

"Scenic route…" I repeated a little fearfully. Beginning to think he was not right in the head, I yelled at him. "You're crazy you know that? You…" I gave a little 'eep' when I saw a yellow cannon narrowly miss us, colliding with the road beside us. Okay. Maybe he wasn't wrong in the head. Maybe _I _ was.

"Slaggit." Spike cursed as he made another sharp turn down a different street.

Realization hit me and I grabbed the safety handle. There were robots in battle behind us, and we had nothing to defend ourselves. "Spike…"

This time he answered… calmly might I add. "Yeah?"

"… You know what you're doing right?" He didn't reply. "Uhh… Spike?" I said again in alarm.

"I know what I'm doing." He said in an affirmative manner

I swallowed hard, a little doubtful that he actually knew what he was doing. Not knowing what I would find, I slowly turned my head to look behind us.

My heart skipped a beat at what I saw… no, _who_ I saw…

_Barricade_.

* * *

I wonder if I even have any readers left, patiently waiting for updates. I once again, apologize for there is no excuse for doing this whether it is exams or school. I am grateful for your attention and humbly accept all feedback and criticism as always.

And once again, I apologize for not being able to reply to all reviewers. I tried to get to most of you in the last few days, but the ones from November and before, I decided not to reply since it is doubtful that you would remember my little story here from all the feedback you have undoubtedly given to others. So please, make do with my thanks here:

An extra big thanks (_hugs included) _to **dreamin'BIG, SeasonSinger, Robin Grimm-Goodfellow, CharlotteAnnRae, DaNoseKnows, ultimateanime12, Ryle Culler, WishingNova, nightmare91, totallycute5, LionLover190, lunahermionemalfoyy, EverBear01, kittirasi, hakusho14, Fallen's child, Lunaris Phoenix, **and **ShiningGalaxy**.

Your feedback is refreshing and I am extremely grateful for your time and energy. This time around, I will try my best to get back to all of you, if there are any readers left of course! Thank you to those who have read up to this far! As always,

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

smellysoap


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Spike again sharply manoeuvred the car expertly, narrowly missing another golden canon. Being the passenger, I could only grip onto my seat tighter, hoping that this would not end badly.

To be honest, I was really only half paying attention to what was happening. The other half of my consciousness was caught up on one thing.

_Barricade?_

...

...

...

Barricade.

Barricade.

Barricade.

Barricade.

Barricade.

...

Just _what _was Barricade trying to accomplish by shooting his almighty canons of doom at us? Surely he must know that I was in the vehicle... unless... he's aiming at _Spike_?

Just what did Spike ever do to Barricade that would give the decepticon reason to shoot at him? Then again, I did recall Barricade once mentioning decepticons were supposed to be feared and 'evil'. So what was it? Did Spike do something to set off Barricade? Or is Barricade perhaps unaware I was in the car, and is randomly shooting various civilians? Both seemed completely bizarre to me, and that was when I had come to a decision.

"Stop the car."

Spike turned his head, his jaw dropping. "_Excuse me_?"

"Stop the car." I said to him firmly.

Spike just scoffed and perhaps sped up (I couldn't really tell; we were going pretty fast to begin with). "I don't know if your processers have been fried, or if they have always been malfunctioning since the day of your birth, but if you haven't noticed," He tilted his head mockingly. "We have a stinkin' decepticon on our afts."

I rolled my eyes, missing the fact that he said the word 'decepticon'. I was really more concentrated on my next plan of action. "Seriously Spike, stop the car. If I get out he'll stop shooting."

I braced myself as another blast of golden light hit a nearby building. Spike scoffed again meanwhile spinning his car slightly to the right to avoid being hit by the debris. "You're really more of an idiot than I first thought you were if you really think the scum will cease fire just because you decide to step out of here. In fact, you'd probably be blown into oblivion." He sneered. "You really think you're _that _important that the whole world will stop what they're doing and spare you the time to utter your idealism? Wake up."

I glared at him, offended not only by the insult towards me, but the insult towards Barricade as well. "You're a real jerk." I said with finality. "You're still letting me out."

Spike gritted his teeth and I could see he was angry and annoyed by the furrowing of his eyebrows. "That is enough from you. Don't think for one second I'm obligated to keep you safe human. Now not another sound wave out of you or I won't hesitate to shove that seatbelt down your throat until your insides bleed, regardless of what Sides says. I'll..."

It's kind of hard for me to explain in words what really happened next because to be honest, I don't really remember what happened myself. Before I knew it (and before Spike could complete his sentence), the whole car was being lurched forward. Through all the sounds of metal brushing against each other, gears grinding, and some sort of friction in the car, I could hear Spike's deep voice yelling, 'Slaggit!'.

I felt the seatbelt unclasp out of its buckle and a finger-like cage envelope my body protectively as the right way up and down seemed to shift and my body rolled around the circular clasp of my prison.

When I opened my eyes and I decided that everything was still, it took me more than a few seconds to realise that my 'cage' that had opened was really a relaxed hand of an alien robot. Shakily, I pulled myself up, finding myself fairly unharmed, and got a closer look at the new alien. It groaned painfully. The robot had somehow crashed into the base of a small brick building, leaving its own indent, causing debris to cascade around it. Its armour was slightly dusty from all the fighting, but making out the colours, I found they looked vaguely familiar.

Suddenly, the metal plates covering its eyes slid open, shocking me upon seeing how blue they were. Its eyes reminded me very much of the other robot Barricade was fighting earlier as well. I stepped back as the robot in front of me steadied itself, groaning a bit. It rubbed its own head. "Julie," the familiar deep voice said in an almost urgent voice as it stood up fully.

I froze both from the sheer size of the alien and the familiar deepness of the voice. The voice that had just been mocking me moments ago. It couldn't be...

"S-Spike?"

He got into a crouching position. "Run!" he yelled, before charging at the incoming Barricade.

On their impact, I cringed at the screeching metal and the red hot sparks that flew as their weapons made contact. Again and again, the two alien robots went at each other, both sides fighting equally hard.

My mind seemed to just skip the part where it should've processed that Spike was indeed an alien as well, and went straight to accepting that fact. It actually wasn't so strange since I didn't really know Spike personally and his odd behaviour really should've been a straight give away.

No. I was really more concentrated on the fight. Spike had told me to flee, but how did anyone expect to run away when I had just been reunited by my long lost alien robot? Especially when he just got shot at by Spike.

Once more, without thinking, I frantically looked around for anything that could help me stop the fight. Really, my creativity was very limited and the only things around me were several street signs, broken glass and pieces of brick strewn all over the street. Since I lacked the physical ability to rip off any signs from their posts, I opted for some bricks and quite unsuccessfully launched it into the battle.

I wasn't really aiming it towards any one of the two in particular. After all, all I needed to do was get their attention. I hurled another several bricks soon after. "HEY! BOTH OF YOU, STOP IT!" I yelled.

The two aliens did not respond. In fact, I wasn't really sure if they actually felt my feeble attempt to get their attention. "HEY!" I yelled again, waving my arms. Frustrated, I huffed and funnelled my hands over my mouth. "I'M TALKING TO YOU IDIOTS!"

Giving into my call, Spike briefly turned to glance in my direction before getting knocked down by a fist from Barricade. Crashing onto the floor, Spike was slow to get back up. Barricade deeming his job well done walked towards me. "I told you to stay until I came for you." He chastised.

Only a few mere feet in front of me, Barricade began crouching down when a screeching of wheels around the corner announced the arrival of a silver robot, similar to Spike, who seemed to flash by so quickly, I couldn't even keep up with his movements. The silver robot leaped into the air and raised his blade up high. I felt my breath hitch and my heart freeze.

"Get away decepticon scum." It said menacingly low.

Barricade raised his arm and was able to protect himself with his armour as the blade came down. However, he was pushed back significantly far away to the other end of the street. Horror -stricken, I was unable to run to him as the silver robot lowered its hand to envelope me and before I knew it, I was experiencing the same tumble I did when Spike had transformed and found myself sitting snugly in the familiar leather seat of a Stingray. I quickly turned to look back to see if Barricade was okay, when I noticed something that (I'll be honest) really freaked me out.

No one was driving the moving car.

"Uh... S-Sides?" I asked, dreading the answer to my inquiry.

The audio screen on the board lit up brilliant blue as a voice came from the speakers. "Please don't freak out."

* * *

So I don't blame you if you're all mad or if you don't care much about this story anymore because really if it were me, I would feel just that, but I will tell you, things are about to get interesting!

I'd just like to take the time again to thank all my followers for this fiction. It really means a lot that you're all eager to read more and I'll tell you this, the reason I decided to write today was because strange enough, I've been recently receiving a lot more feedback which is strange since I haven't updated in so long. Nonetheless I am very grateful and I know that I don't deserve such great readers as all of you!

Now a big thanks to the reviewers for Chapter 7: **CaMaRoFaN14, Duvet, EthanPrime21, ChocoKoko, Shining Galaxy, Lunaris Phoenix, , kittirasi, Demoness-Of-Crystal, Dragon of Yin and Yang, WishingNova, Undead Artist, nightmare91, totallycute5, Lunar Mist, EvilPurpleCookiePenkeyMonguin, mercenarybunny, Ironhide and Lennox, Roc2Roll, Nightbloodwolf, XLR8ION, gender-bender-lover-101**

I once again have to apologize profusely for not replying to every reviewer but please know (and I hope you're reading this part as well!) that I greatly appreciate the time you took to put in your thoughts on this fiction here and I hope to hear more from you in the future!

I'm not going to jinx when the next chapter will be out cause every prediction I have seems to be so unreliable. I'll be the first to admit that my Transformers knowledge has gotten a bit rusty so I'll need to surf through the fandom once more to renew my knowledge. On a lighter note, I think I have a new day to day plan/schedule that will enable me time to write if I so wish! Anyways, we'll see how all that turns out! Again, thanks for reading this far! And as always,

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

smellysoap


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

This was getting a little old. Am I really the only one who _isn't_ an alien robot? The only one who's _normal_? And how dare he hit Barricade? Especially right after we had our little reunion! Okay Jules, deep breaths. Just breathe and everything will be okay. Breathe. Don't be angry. Drawing a deep inhale, I tuned out Sides' slightly panicked voice.

"I was going to tell you, I swear, but..."

Breathe.

"And then we received intel that some con's were going to attack in the city and..."

Breathe. In and out. Ignore him.

"Then in the midst of battle, Sunny contacted me saying you were by yourself..."

I almost popped a vein at the mention of Sunny.., or er... Spike, whatever his name was. I balled my fists, trying to maintain my no longer steady breaths.

"And then I hear from him that that damn sorry excuse of a Cybertronian, deceptiscum, slaggin' aft _Barricade_ was on your tails, and I..."

"Sides!" I snapped at him probably more angrily than I should have. "Stop that!" So much for the deep breathing.

Sides gave me a quizzical look. "Stop what?"

"Stop..." I found myself momentarily at a loss for words. "Stop... Badmouthing him!"

"Who? That fraggin' con? Barricade?" He said incredulously. "Are you out of your mind? He was about to hurt you Jules!"

"I said stop it!" I said again. "He wasn't going to hurt me!" I defended Barricade defiantly.

I could hear Sides sigh through his speakers, and for a moment nothing was said. After a few moments, the lights on the dashboard lit up at his voice again. "Jules," he said with a certain tenderness. I instantly felt calmed and released a breath of my own. "Barricade is a decepticon. Decepticons live to thrive in the pain of others and accomplish their own personal goals at others' expense. They care not for humans, but only for themselves."

I did not reply. I didn't know that about decepticons. I looked out the window, noticing that we were speeding back to my house. I sighed to myself again. It has always been implied to me that decepticons were bad. There is no confusion there. But within the group of bad, there must be some good in there too... can't there be? I looked away and pondered out the window. I had no power when it comes to alien robot battles. What am I supposed to say to convince Sides that Barricade is good? But did I truly know if Barricade is good? I paused my thoughts momentarily and came to the conclusion: I didn't.

I must think on this more. I mean, I'm not part of their world. I don't know anything about them. As of now there is nothing I can say or do to convince Sides. I can't do anything.

Neither of us spoke until Sides pulled into my driveway. Judging by the missing car, the house was empty. I still refused to look at Sides, but submitted and spoke. "Is everyone okay?" I asked quietly, arms crossed.

The boy, or rather the robot I thought I knew, materialized. The driver's seat split open and the metal gears and parts were shifting, emerging from the driver's seat. A second machine came out and separated itself from the car. It formed into the shape of a human body. A glitchy image suddenly appeared on the human-like robot, and with a fuzzing sound, the picture solidified into the man I've been spending time with for many of the past weeks.

Sides took one of my hands into his. "They're okay." He said softly.

With a huff, I tore away and climbed out of the car. He followed me inside as I quietly, but definitively angrily led him to my room. Sides closed the door as he entered to be sure that we could talk in private.

I gave him a furious glare. "When were you going to tell me that you are a giant alien robot?!" I said angrily.

Sides looked down at his feet guiltily. "I wasn't sure... when the time was right I suppose..."

"Oh because there is always a right time to say, 'By the way, I'm actually an alien robot from outer space and I wish to be your friend' right?" I turned away exasperatedly. "You should've told me the minute you thought we would be friends! You prolonged it and it only made it worse!" I said furiously.

"I couldn't." His face was sad. "My commander and team would not have let me! I can't sacrifice the risk of..." He trailed off without completing his sentence.

"The risk of what?" I snapped. "The risk of me telling everyone? The risk of me revealing your secret to the world? The risk of me yelling out to everyone, 'Hey everybody, aliens are real! We have giant robots in the city!'? Honestly Sides, if you didn't think you can trust me in the first place, than why bother to spend time with me at all?" My own rant led me to a revelation. It hit me like a tonne of bricks. Boy, am I furious. "Did you _pity_ me?" At this point I was most definitely yelling.

"No Jules, I..."

"You what?" I interrupted, crossing my arms. "Please tell me, because I'd really like to hear your excu..."

"I liked you." He blurted out. Sides raised his head, looking me in the eye. He strode towards me and closed the gap between us. "The moment I saw you, I felt something I'm sure no being from Cyberton has ever felt before."

My train of thought came to an instant halt. What? My arms unfolded, and hung loosely against my sides as I unconsciously took a cautious step back. My mouth lay agape, and then I closed it, and it opened again. "Wait, wha..."

"At first I thought maybe you were just another charge." He pulled away and began to ramble nervously. "You see, Bee has Sam as a charge and there is a certain powerful connection between them that does not force, but..." He paused to look for the proper words. "enables him feel an abnormal amount of care for Sam. He is willingly there for Sam. Bee is his guardian. They're friends and yet they want to be together, they have an unexplainable energy." He furrowed his brows. "I don't think I explained very well, but that's what I thought we had at first. I..."

"You're being confusing." I interrupted suddenly. I then sat on the bed and watched him join me. "Bee is the camaro... " I said slowly. He did not disagree. "...So you don't feel the attachment to me?"

"I do!" He said almost pleadingly. "Believe me I do, but I got talking to Bee and he described the feeling and it is not the same. I do feel that you're very important to me. I want you to be safe... but there's... more... as well..." He trailed off quietly at the end.

"Explain it to me." I demanded.

Sides turned fully to face me. He took my hands into his and looked me in the eyes. He started softly, "Every moment, I want to be with you. I find my hard drive memory consistently going back to you, thinking about you. I find myself wishing to always being in communication with you. I want you to be safe, and most of all..." He paused. "I want you to feel the same way."

Stunned, I did not say anything at first. Things just got a lot more complicated. What on Earth am I supposed to say to something like that?

I tore my eyes and hands away from his and stared down at my lap. It became very apparent that I had absolutely no idea how to respond. It wasn't until a few minutes until I spoke. "Th-that's a lot to take in."

"I realize that." He said softly. "I know you've been through a lot tonight. Please lie down with me." He shifted his position on the bed and made room.

I contemplated for a bit. Part of me wanted him to leave so I can think by myself for a while, but the other part of me just had so very many questions. Who else is an alien? How many of them are they? Why are they here? What is this war with the decepticons? I had so many questions that I knew they could not all be answered in one night. And finally, there's another part of me that admits to being just a tad flattered. With a small sigh I surrendered and laid down next to him. "I have a lot of questions." I warned him.

He turned towards me and gave me a firm stare. "And I'll answer all of them."

* * *

Hopefully I've kept everyone interested, and although I haven't made any progress with FanFiction in almost 3 years, I still like to check back every so often.

At least this chapter was a little exciting and sweet… I think! Let me know what you think and how you feel!

A large thanks to followers, favourite-rs and especially the reviewers: **Vongola Primo12, love-loves-love, EthanPrime21, Roc2Roll, ShiningGalaxy, ChocoKoko, sunkissedvampire, XLR8ION, Nightbloodwolf, BabylonianRider, Laeila Tsukiyomi-Storm, gender-bender-lover-101, Soului, WishingNova, bee-rox98, CaMaRoFaN14, Lunar Mist, PockyMunchingGod, beccalovesbumblebee, AlarataraWitchIce, Tomboy96, Kasuka-chan, transformationsgirl, Shadowfang, Skee-d, Linda Chicana, biscotti gelato, NoThErEaNyMoRe11111, GodoftheSeas21, Leonixon, Kimi-chan is a cat witch, Azura Soul Reaver, Birgitte LP, Death's BlackOut, Dragon of Yin and Yang, RevieWriter, Topkicker26, Hermione, sm1982, angel897, Invader Ivy, Fox of Magic, Fallen's child, BlankPage101, , anonomon, Stellar-Prime, Jazz Is My Lil Ninja, RANDOM FOX GRRL, cittycat3 and the Guest! **(:

Everyone has put up a lot with me and I'm so fortunate to have so many supporters! Furthermore, as always:

**Feedback and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

smellysoap


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